'ViWwUwy, 


JMM 


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LIFE 


OF 


WASHINGTON; 


A    BIOGRAPHY 


PERSONAL,  MILITARY,  AND  POLITICAL. 


BY   BENSON    T.  LOSSING, 

J     h 


IN  THREE  VOLUMES. 
VOL.  I. 


NEW    YORK: 


VIRTUE    .A.ND    COMPANY, 

36   JOHN  -STREET. 


L75 


,  I 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty. 

By  BENSON  J.  LOSSING, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 
Southern  District  of  New  York. 


TO 

airioia  in  all  f  anh, 

WHO     LOVE     JUSTICE     AND     FREEDOM, 

AND   EEVEEENOE  THE   RIGHTS   OF   MAN, 


ILLUSTRATIVE  OF  THE  LIFE  AND  CHARACTER  OF  THEIR  GREAT  EXEMPLAR, 

ABE  DEDICATED  BY 

THE  AUTHOR. 


7742G7 


PREFACE. 


THIS  Biography  of  WASHINGTON  was  projected  by  the  late  Rufus 
Wilmot  Griswold,  D.D.  He  had  entered  upon  the  labor  of  pre 
paring  it  for  the  press,  with  zeal  and  ability,  when  brain  and  hand 
were  prostrated  by  disease  which,  for  years,  had  been  lurking  in 
his  system.  He  had  then  written  about  two  hundred  pages  of  the 
work,  and  the  publishers  had  commenced  issuing  it  in  monthly 
parts.  Ever  hopeful,  and  anxious  to  make  this  the  crowning  act 
of  his  literary  life,  he  hesitated  long  before  he  would  consent  to 
abandon  the  enterprise  and  leave  its  execution  to  another.  He 
had  arranged  the  plan  with  care ;  he  had  selected  the  subjects  for 
a  greater  portion  of  the  illustrations;  and  he  had  given  minute 
instructions  concerning  many  of  the  designs.  For  several  weeks 
he  lay  upon  his  bed,  contemplating  the  performance  of  this  task, 
so  congenial  to  his  tastes  and  feelings,  and  hourly  hoping  for  a 
favorable  change  in  his  malady,  that  should  permit  him  to  resume 
it  with  renewed  vigor. 

Four  monthly  parts  had  been  issued,  and  several  thousands  of 
dollars  had  been  spent  by  the  publishers  in  the  preparation  of 
the  engravings,  when  Doctor  Griswold  was  compelled  to  lay  aside 
his  pen.  They  waited  patiently  for  its  resumption;  but,  finally, 


vi  PREFACE. 

influenced  by  a  natural  desire  to  proceed  with  the  work,  and  fulfil 
their  engagements  with  the  public,  they  insisted  that  he  should 
relinquish  the  enterprise.  They  then  solicited  the  present  writer 
to  undertake  the  completion  of  the  Biography.  He  consented 
with  reluctance,  chiefly  because  the  Life  of  Washington,  by  Mr. 
Irving,  was  then  in  course  of  preparation  and  publication,  and  he 
was  unwilling  to  be  engaged  in  a  similar  labor  that  might,  in  the 
least  degree,  interfere  with  that  of  his  friend.  This  objection  was 
overruled  by  the  consideration  that  the  work  was  already  com 
menced,  and  wrould  be  continued;  and  he  undertook  the  comple 
tion  of  it  with  a  determination  to  give  to  the  pleasant  task  all 
the  advantages  of  his  experience  in  similar  labors  for  several 
years  before,  and  such  abilities  as  he  possessed.  He  had  just 
entered  upon  the  duties  he  had  assumed,  when  Doctor  Griswold 
died.  With  the  exception  of  the  first  two  hundred  pages  of  the 
first  volume,  it  is  entirely  from  the  pen  of  the  present  writer. 

Justice  to  all  parties  seemed  to  require  the  foregoing  explana 
tory  history  of  these  volumes.  The  same  consideration  makes  it 
necessary  for  the  writer  to  observe  that  whatever  praise  may  be 
due  for  judgment  and  taste  in  the  selection  and  execution  of  the 
illustrations,  belongs  chiefly  to  the  original  projector,  and  to  the 

publishers.     With  these  he  had  little  to  do. 

B.  J.  L. 

POUGHKEEPSIB,  NEW  YoBK,  September,  1860. 


ILLUSTRATIONS  IN  VOL.  I. 


PORTRAIT   OP   WASHINGTON    (PEALE's) FRONTISPIECE. 

BIRTHPLACE    OF    WASHINGTON VIGNETTE   TITLE. 

WASHINGTON   AND    FAIRFAX   AT   A   WAR-DANCE TO   FACE   PAGE    54 

NATURAL   BRIDGE,    VIRGINIA 56 

A   TREACHEROUS    INDIAN 89 

WASHINGTON   AND   GIST   VISIT   QUEEN   ALIQUIPPA 91 

WASHINGTON   READING  PRAYERS   IN   HIS    CAMP 117 

BURIAL    OF    GENERAL   BRADDOCK 171 

MISS    MARY   PHILIPSE 199 

SETTLERS   IMPLORING   WASHINGTON'S   PROTECTION 211 

WASHINGTON   PLANTING  THE   BRITISH   FLAG   AT  FORT   DUQUESNE 283 

MARTHA   WASHINGTON 287 

PORTRAITS    OF    SIR    WILLIAM    PEPPERELL,    SIR    J.    AMHERST,    GENERALS    BRAD- 
DOCK,    ABERCROMBIE,    AND    WOLFE 290 

THE   DEATH    OF    GENERAL    WOLFE  .  .  . 299 

DESTRUCTION    OF   THE   SCHOONER    GASP&,   IN   THE   WATERS    OF    RHODE   ISLAND, 

IN   1772    381 

FANUEIL   HALL,    BOSTON 382 

BOSTON   IN    1774,    FROM    DORCHESTER    HEIGHTS 416 

PORTRAITS   OF   PATRICK   HENRY,  CHARLES   THOMSON,  PEYTON  RANDOLPH,  REV. 

J.    DUCH&,   AND    RICHARD    HENRY   LEE 420 

BATTLE   AT   LEXINGTON 505 

PORTRAITS    OF    GENERALS    WARREN,    STARK,    PUTNAM,    HEATH,    AND    WARD...  513 

JOHN   HANCOCK 534 

THE   BATTLE   AT   BUNKER'S    HILL,    NEAR    BOSTON,    JUNE    17,   1775 569 

WASHINGTON   TAKING    COMMAND    OF   THE    ARMY   AT    CAMBRIDGE,    1775 584 

MAP    OF   BOSTON,    WITH    ITS    ENVIRONS 619 

PORTRAITS    OF  GENERAL   GAGE,  SIR   HENRY  CLINTON,  CHARLES   MARQUIS    CORN- 

WALLIS,    GENERAL   BURGOYNE,    AND   LORD    HOWE 620 

DEATH    OF    GENERAL   MONTGOMERY 718 

ACTION   BETWEEN   THE    SERAPIS    AND    THE    BON    HOMME    RICHARD,    SEPTEMBER 

22,  1779 743 

WASHINGTON    MONUMENT   AT    RICHMOND,    VIRGINIA 768 


WASHINGTON. 


CHAPTER   I. 

GENEALOGY  OF  THE  WASHINGTON  FAMILY  — EMIGRATION  OF  JOHN  AND  LAWRENCE 
WASHINGTON    TO    AMERICA BIRTH    OF    GEORGE    WASHINGTON. 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON  was  born  at  a  modest  farmhouse  near  the 
place  where  a  small  stream  called  Pope's  creek  falls  into  the  Poto 
mac  river,  on  the  twenty-second  day  of  February,  in  the  year  of 
our  Lord  1732,  which  was  the  fifth  year  of  the  reign  of  George 
the  Second,  sovereign  of  these  dominions.  In  the  same  year  was 
planted  Georgia,  the  last  of  the  old  thirteen  colonies  which  this 
child  was  destined  to  lead  to  independence  and  liberty. 

The  family  of  Washington  was  eminently  respectable,  and  had 
been  so  for  many  generations.  Mr.  Sparks,  in  his  careful  and 
judicious  history  of  our  illustrious  hero  has  elucidated  this  point 
with  great  particularity  and  exactness  of  research.  Not  only  is 
pride  of  ancestry  an  honorable  pride,  but  there  are  few  feelings  apt 
to  be  productive  of  more  happy  consequences.  The  ambition  to 
transmit  to  posterity  a  shining  name  untarnished  or  with  added 
lustre  is  often  the  strongest  incentive  to  generous  action  and  the 
surest  safeguard  of  virtue.  In  this  country,  where  so  many  noble 
men  have  been  the  creators  of  their  own  family  distinctions,  and 
meaner  characters,  without  hereditary  elevation,  have  also  been 
without  that  bravery  of  nature  necessary  to  the  establishment  of  a 
far  reaching  good  reputation,  the  sentiment  here  commended  is 

frequently  undervalued  or  depreciated.      But  how  many  men  of 

2 


18  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY. 

great  fortunes  are  among  us  who  would  give  half  their  possessions, 
if  by  doing  so  it  were  possible  to  dignify  the  traditional  positions 
of  their  ancestors,  or  relieve  their  inherited  names  from  well- 
deserved  reproaches!  Such  is  the  infirmity  of  human  nature 
however  that  persons  of  this  description  are  more  likely  than  any 
others  to  stigmatise  as  unrepublican  or  otherwise  to  decry  a  respect 
for  blood.  The  ignorant  and  vulgar  ambition  of  characters,  badly 
made  at  last,  to  be  regarded  as  self-made,  is  much  inculcated  by  a 
class  who  are  sensible  of  the  disadvantages  of  birth  only,  or  who 
have  but  inadequate  perceptions  of  their  moral  or  intellectual 
deficiencies.  This  large  class  has  been  effectively  exposed  to  con 
temptuous  ridicule  by  Mr.  Charles  Dickens  in  his  instructive  novel 
of  "Hard  Times."  It  is  not  to  be  questioned  that  the  pursuit 
under  difficulties  of  knowledge,  glory,  or  a  capacity  for  usefulness, 
is  entitled  to  generous  admiration.  God  forbid.  From  the  begin 
ning  the  heights  of  fame  were  of  rough  ascent,  and  the  most  for 
tunate  never  attained  to  their  serener  atmosphere  but  by  excessive 
toil  and  self-sacrifice.  It  is  as  natural  and  wise  however  to  believe 
that  a  man  wrhose  father  has  scaled  these  elevations  will  be  more 
successful  than  another  in  repeating  the  achievement,  as  that  a 
horse  sired  by  the  winner  of  a  hundred  fields  will  secure  the  stakes 
upon  a  course  where  every  competitor  is  from  a  drayman's  stable. 
Though  this  law  obtains  so  commonly  as  to  compel  a  recognition  of 
its  authority,  happily  it  is  not  inflexible.  A  rude  boy  like  Daniel 
Morgan  may  sometimes  in  ripened  years  wear  gallantly  the  decora 
tions  of  the  general,  or  a  gentlemanly  bred  Charles  Lee,  learned 
and  used  to  the  atmosphere  of  courts,  may  fall  into  the  temper  and 
habits  of  a  vagabond. 

The  lineage  of  Washington  is  traceable  through  six  hundred 
years  to  William  de  Hertburn  of  the  manor  of  Washington  or 
Wessyngton  in  the  county  of  Durham  in  England.  According  to  a 
custom  which  at  that  period  obtained  among  Norman  families  of 
consideration  De  Hertbum  assumed  as  a  surname  the  name  of  his 
estate.  For  between  two  and  three  centuries  the  De  Wessingtons, 
as  knights  of  the  palatinate  of  Durham,  were  engaged  in  frequent 


GENEALOGY  OF  THE  FAMILY.  19 

chivalrous  enterprises,  or  as  ecclesiastics,  were  attached  to  its  clois 
ters.  John  De  Wessyngton,  prior  of  the  Benedictine  convent  con 
nected  with  the  Durham  cathedral,  and  author  of  a  learned  treatise 
maintaining  the  rights  of  his  priory,  in  1426  presided  at  a  general 
chapter  of  his  order.  The  family  increased  and  was  honorably 
known  in  different  parts  of  England.  The  name  underwent  a 
variety  of  changes ;  the  seigniorial  prefix  of  de  was  abandoned,  and 
Wessyngton  became  Wassington,  Wasshington,  and,  finally,  Wash 
ington.  •  John  Washington,  of  Warton,  in  Lancashire,  was  the 
immediate  ancestor  of  the  American  Washingtons.  His  son  Law 
rence  was  of  Gray's  Inn,  held  the  office  of  mayor  of  Northampton, 
and  when  Henry  the  Eighth,  in  1538,  carrying  out  a  plan  he  had 
formed  and  partially  executed  two  years  before,  shut  up  the  larger 
as  well  as  the  smaller  religious  houses,  the  domain  of  Sulgrave,  a 
part  of  the  confiscated  property  which  had  belonged  to  the  mon 
astery  of  St.  Andrew,  near  that  borough,  was  granted  to  him, 
perhaps  for  services  rendered  in  the  then  recent  rebellion  in  the 
northern  counties.  Sulgrave  remained  in  the  possession  of  his  heirs 
nearly  a  century,  and  was  commonly  called  the  Washington  manor. 
Lawrence  Washington  died  at  an  advanced  age  in  1584,  and  with 
Anne  his  wife  was  buried  there.  He  had  four  sons  and  eleven 
daughters.*  His  second  son,  Lawrence  Washington,  jr.,  became 
chief  register  of  the  chancery,  and  was  knighted.  His  wife  also 
was  named  Anne,  and  their  monument  is  still  shown  in  the  parish 
church  of  Garsdon,  about  three  miles  from  Malmesbury,  in  Wiltshire, 
where  Sir  Lawrence  died,  at  the  age  of  sixty-four,  in  1643.  One 
of  his  grand-daughters  married  an  earl  of  Ferrars.  Another  son  of 
the  grantee  of  Sulgrave,  Sir  William  Washington,  of  Packington,  in 
the  county  of  Kent,  married  a  half-sister  of  George  Villiers,  Duke 
of  Buckingham,  whose  name  is  so  conspicuous  in  the  history  of 
Charles  the  First.  Sir  William's  son,  Sir  Henry,  was  a  colonel  in 
the  king's  army  in  the  ensuing  civil  war,  and  after  distinguishing 


*  So  Mr.  Irving  infers,  i.  13,  from  a  personal  examination  of  the  monumental  inscription  in  Sul 
grave  church,  dated  1564.  Mr.  Sparks,  i.  545,  copying  a  letter  from  Sulgrave  written  in  1793  to 
Sir  Isaac  Heard,  says  "  four  sons  and  seven  daughters." 


20  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY. 

himself  under  Prince  Rupert,  in  1643,  gave  Cromwell's  general 
Fairfax  a  great  deal  of  trouble  at  Worcester,  which  he  refused  to 
surrender  until  the  last  extremity,  in  1646.  Though  the  Washing- 
tons  in  most  cases  adhered  to  the  royal  cause,  an  exception  is 
discovered  in  Joseph  Washington,  of  the  Temple,  author  of  several 
works  in  the  law  and  in  general  literature,  who  translated  Milton's 
Defensio  pro  Populo  Anglicano  Claudii  Salmasii  Defensionem 
Kegem — a  defence  of  the  people  of  England  against  Salmasius's 
defence  of  the  king — which  did  more  harm  to  the  party  of  the 
Stuarts  than  would  have  been  done  by  fifty  defeats  in  battle. 

Lawrence  Washington  of  Sulgrave,  as  has  been  mentioned,  had 
fifteen  children.  His  eldest  son,  Robert,  had  sixteen,  and  the  second 
eldest  son  in  the  direct  line,  Lawrence,  was  the  father  of  fourteen  : 
seven  sons  and  seven  daughters.  The  second  and  fourth  of  these 
sons,  John  and  Lawrence*  Washington,  in  1657  emigrated  to  Vir 
ginia,  a  favorite  resort  of  the  cavaliers  during  the  period  of  the 
commonwealth.')' 

The  population  of  Virginia  at  this  period  scarcely  exceeded  thirty 
thousand,  exclusive  of  the  Indians.  Fourteen  years  afterward  Sir 
William  Berkeley  estimated  the  number  at  but  "  forty  thousand  per 
sons,  men,  women,  and  children,"  of  whom  there  were  "  two  thousand 
black  slaves,  six  thousand  Christian  servants  for  a  short  time,  and 
the  rest,"  he  says,  "  have  been  born  in  the  country  or  have  come 
in  to  settle  or  serve  in  hope  of  bettering  their  condition.''^  The 
people  were  hospitable  but  indolent.  The  home  government  had 

*  Andrew,  according  to  Mr.  Irving ;  Mr.  Sparks  gives  the  name  Lawrence  instead  of  Andrew, 
following  memoranda  prepared  for  Sir  Isaac  Heard  by  President  Washington  in  1792. 

t  A  short  time  before  the  emigration  of  the  Washingtons,  Sir  William  Davenant,  the  poet,  under 
the  patronage  of  the  queen  mother  of  France,  had  projected  and  organized  a  company  comprising 
a  large  number  of  artificers  collected  in  that  kingdom,  with  whom  he  set  sail  with  the  purpose  of 
founding  a  new  plantation  in  Virginia.  The  expedition  was  intercepted  by  Cromwell's  fleet,  and 
Davenant,  who  was  taken  prisoner,  owed  the  safety  of  his  life  to  the  friendly  interposition  of 
Milton.  Cowley,  referring  to  this  enterprise,  in  a  poem  addressed  to  Davenant,  exclaimed  : 

"  Sure  'twas  the  noble  boldness  of  the  muse 
Did  thy  desire  to  seek  new  worlds  infuse." 

Cowley  himself  was  anxious  for  a  "  safer  world"  than  Europe  was  at  that  time,  and  in  the  preface 
to  a  volume  of  his  poems  published  in  1656  declares  that  "  his  desire  had  been  for  some  time  past, 
and  did  still  very  vehemently  continue,  to  retire  to  some  of  the  American  plantations,  and  to  forsake 
this  world  for  ever." 

t  Answers  to  the  Lords  of  the  Committee  of  Colonies. 


OPPRESSIVE  LAWS.  21 

adopted  the  principle  of  Montesquieu  that  "the  mother  country 
alone  shall  trade  in  the  colonies,  and  that  from  very  good  reason : 
because  the  design  of  the  settlement  was  the  extension  of  com 
merce,  and  not  the  foundation  of  a  city  or  a  new  empire."*  The 
colony  was  subjected  to  excessive  commercial  oppression.  By  the 
Navigation  Act  of  the  first  year  of  Charles  the  Second,  which  made 
the  trade  of  the  several  plantations  completely  subject  to  govern 
mental  authority,  and  exclusively  subservient  to  the  interests  of 
English  commerce  and  navigation,  the  policy  of  the  Long  Parlia 
ment  was  simply  continued.  By  this  act  it  was  ordained  that  no 
commodities  should  be  imported  into  any  English  settlement  or 
exported  thence  but  in  vessels  built  in  England  or  her  colonial 
plantations,  and  navigated  by  crews  of  which  the  masters  and  three 
fourths  of  the  mariners  should  be  English  subjects,  under  the  pen 
alty  of  forfeiture  of  ship  and  cargo ;  and  that  none  but  natural-born 
subjects  of  the  English  crown,  or  persons  legally  naturalized,  should 
exercise  the  occupation  of  merchant  or  factor  in  any  English  or 
colonial  settlement  but  at  the  peril  of  losing  goods  and  chattels. 
These  regulations  being  evaded  or  found  insufficient  it  was  ordained 
that  the  colonists  could  have  no  foreign  goods  which  were  not  first 
landed  in  England,  and  carried  directly  thence  to  the  plantations. 
"  This  was  a  misfortune,"  says  Beverley,  "  that  cut  with  a  double 
edge ;  for  it  reduced  their  staple  to  a  very  low  price,  while  it  raised 
the  value  of  European  goods  to  what  the  merchants  pleased."  It 
is  amusing  to  read  of  the  sham  compensation  which  was  offered  by 
the  parliament  for  these  restraints,  in  declaring  that  the  colonies 
should  enjoy  the  exclusive  privilege  of  supplying  tobacco,  the  culti 
vation  of  which  was  prohibited  in  England,  Ireland,  Guernsey,  and 
Jersey.  Their  natural  energies  thus  repressed  and  their  activity 
thus  discouraged,  it  is  not  strange  that  the  Virginians  were  gener 
ally  content  with  the  easily  acquired  necessaries  of  a  comfortable 
subsistence.  "They  depend,"  says  Beverley,  writing  a  few  years 
after  the  emigration  of  the  Washingtons,  "altogether  upon  the 
liberality  of  nature,  without  endeavoring  to  improve  its  gifts  by  art 

*  Spirit  of  Laws. 


22  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY. 

or  industry.  They  spunge  upon  the  blessings  of  a  warm  sun  and  a 
fruitful  soil,  and  almost  grudge  the  pains  of  gathering  in  the 
bounties  of  the  earth."* 

The  Washingtons  however  were  not  men  to  be  forced  or  seduced 
into  lives  of  idleness.  They  purchased  lands  in  Westmoreland  coun 
ty,  on  the  northern  neck,  between  the  Potomac  and  Eappahannock 
rivers,  and  became  active  and  successful  planters.  John  had  a 
vocation  for  public  affairs,  and  was  in  turn  a  soldier  and  a  legislator. 
The  Seneca  Indians,  a  tribe  of  the  Iroquois,  had  driven  the  Susque- 
hannahs,  who  occupied  the  region  about  the  head  of  the  Chesa 
peake,  southward  into  Maryland,  and  the  people  of  that  province 
had  been  compelled  to  take  arms  for  the  defence  of  their  territory. 
Apprehensive  that  Virginia  might  be  invaded,  the  Potomac  was 
guarded,  and,  as  dangers  increased,  at  the  solicitation  of  Governor 
Calvert  was  crossed,  by  Colonel  "Washington,  who  took  an  ener 
getic  part  in  the  vengeful  and  not  very  creditable  war.f  He  became 
a  magistrate  also,  and  a  member  of  the  house  of  burgesses.  His 
distinction  and  popularity  are  illustrated  in  the  fact  that  the  parish 
in  which  he  resided  received  and  has  ever  since  borne  the  name  of 
Washington.  He  married  Anne  Pope,  daughter  of  a  neighboring 
planter,  by  whom  he  had  several  children,  the  eldest  of  whom  was 
Lawrence  Washington,  married  in  1689  to  Mildred  Warner,  of  the 
county  of  Gloucester.  Lawrence  Washington  died  at  an  early  age, 
in  1697,  leaving  two  sons,  John  and  Augustine.  Augustine  Wash 
ington,  born  in  1694,  was  married  at  twenty-one  to  Jane  Butler,  of 
his  native  county,  who  lived  thirteen  years,  and  sixteen  months 
after  her  death  became  the  husband  of  Mary  Ball,  the  mother  of 
the  Liberator. 

As  has  already  been  stated,  George  Washington  was  born  on  the 
twenty-second  of  February,  (old  style,  the  eleventh,)  in  the  year  of 

*  History  of  Virginia,  part  iv.,  ch.  22. 

t  The  Indians  "  began  to  be  more  inclinable  to  peace  than  war,  which  was  the  cause  (no  more  horse 
flesh  being  to  had),  that  they  sent  out  six  of  their  woerowances  (chief  men)  to  commence  a  treaty. 
What  the  artiklos  were  that  they  brought  along  with  them,  to  treat  of,  I  do  not  know,  but  certainely 
they  were  so  unacceptable  to  the  English,  that  they  caused  the  commissioners'  braines  to  be  knocked 
out  for  dictating  so  badly  to  their  tongues  :  which  yet,  'tis  possible,  expressed  more  reason  than  the 
English  had  to  prove  the  lawfulness  of  this  action,  being  diametricall  to  the  law  of  arms." — Bur- 
wtll's  Account  of  Uacon's  and  Inyram's  liebcllion,  p.  2. 


BIRTHPLACE  OF  WASHINGTON.  23 

grace  1732.  He  was  the  eldest  son  by  the  second  marriage,  and  a 
great-grandson  of  his  emigrant  ancestor.  By  his  first  wife  Angus- 
tine  Washington  had  four  children,  two  of  whom,  Lawrence  and 
Augustine,  lived  to  mature  years.  By  the  second  he  had  six, 
George,  Betty,  Samuel,  John  Augustine,  Charles,  and  Mildred. 

The  house  in  which  George  Washington  was  born  was  of  a  very 
modest  appearance.  It  was  the  old  homestead  which  the  family 
had  occupied  for  three  quarters  of  a  century,  with  but  four  rooms, 
and  attics,  a  steep  roof  with  projecting  eaves,  and  a  large  chimney 
at  each  end.  Not  a  vestige  of  it  is  now  remaining,  but  the  last 
surviving  executor  of  his  will  has  placed  a  stone  where  it  stood, 
with  an  inscription  of  his  name  and  the  date  of  his  birth.  In 
describing  the  place  Mr.  Paulding,  writing  in  1834,  says :  "A  few 
scanty  relics  alone  remain  to  mark  the  spot,  which  will  ever  be 
sacred  in  the  eyes  of  posterity.  A  clump  of  old  decayed  fig  trees, 
probably  coeval  with  the  mansion,  yet  exists ;  and  a  number  of 
vines,  and  shrubs,  and  flowers,  still  reproduce  themselves  every 
year,  as  if  to  mark  its  site,  and  flourish  among  the  hallowed  ruins." 


24  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1735. 


CHAPTER   II. 

REMOVAL    OF  THE    FAMILY    TO    STAFFORD  COUNTY EARLY    TRAINING    OF    GEORGE 

WASHINGTON HIS  BROTHER  LAWRENCE  A  CAPTAIN  IN  THE  WAR  WITH  SPAIN 

COMES    HOME    AFTER    THE    BATTLE    OF    CARTHAGENA HIS    MARRIAGE DEATH 

AND  CHARACTER  OF  LAWRENCE  WASHINGTON CHARACTER  OF  HIS  WIDOW. 

SOON  after  the  birth  of  George  Washington  his  father  removed 
from  the  family  seat  in  Westmoreland  county  to  an  estate  which  he 
owned  in  Stafford  county,  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Kappahannock, 
opposite  Fredericksburg.  Here  was  passed  Washington's  childhood. 
The  new  home  was  a  small  house,  built  of  wood,  in  the  style  gen 
erally  adopted  by  the  better  class  of  Virginia  farmers  at  that  time. 
It  looked  out  on  an  ample  meadow,  sloping  away  to  the  river,  and 
was  surrounded  with  trees  and  a  finely  cultivated  garden. 

Augustine  Washington  was  a  large  man,  with  fine  health,  and 
addicted  to  the  sports  of  country  gentlemen,  but  thrifty  and  pros 
perous  in  his  commerce  with  the  world.  He  was  fond  of  his  chil 
dren,  and  anecdotes  have  come  down  to  us  which  show  the  care 
with  which  he  attended  to  their  moral  as  well  as  their  intellectual 
culture.  The  sons  of  many  of  the  wealthier  families  in  the  middle 
and  southern  colonies  were  in  this  period  educated  abroad,  and 
the  learned  professions  were  largely  occupied  by  graduates  of 
the  English  universities.  Augustine  Washington  sent  his  eldest  son, 
Lawrence,  to  England,  when  about  fifteen  years  of  age,  that  he 
might  possess  every  advantage  which  could  give  grace  or  dignity  to 
the  future  head  of  his  house.  George,  the  eldest  son  by  the  second 
marriage,  was  instructed  at  home,  and  in  a  school  kept  by  one  of  his 
father's  tenants,  the  sexton  of  the  parish,  named  Hobby,  whose  own 
acquirements  were  probably  limited  to  a  meagre  knowledge  of  read 
ing,  writing,  and  arithmetic.  Such  schools,  provided  by  the  joint  con 
tributions  of  neighboring  planters,  were  not  uncommon  in  Virginia, 
There  were  some  of  a  better  description  in  the  villages,  and  a  few 


JEx.  7.]  EARLY  TRAINING.  25 

clergymen,  here  and  there,  found  leisure  from  parochial  duties  for 
attention  to  private  classes  in  more  advanced  studies.  The  best 
public  means  of  education  would  however  have  been  unfortunate 
for  George  Washington  if  they  had  caused  his  withdrawal  in  any 
considerable  degree  from  the  altogether  suitable  and  excellent 
culture  which  he  received  at  home.  There  is,  as  -Mr.  Upham  well 
observes,*  every  reason  to  believe  that  he  enjoyed  from  his  earliest 
years  the  best  advantages  that  result  from  wise  and  faithful  parental 
care  and  affection.  From  his  subsequent  character  it  is  quite  certain 
that  the  elements  of  moral  principle,  of  careful  and  accurate  obser 
vation,  of  industry  and  order,  were  instilled  into  his  mind  at  the 
very  beginning.  The  qualities  and  habits  for  which  he  was  remark 
able  were  precisely  those  which  indicate  the  power  of  domestic 
education,  and  could  not  have  sprung  from  any  other  influence  than 
the  ever  watchful  eye  and  untiring  attention  of  affectionate  and 
thoughtful  parents.  From  the  first  opening  of  his  mind,  through 
the  whole  forming  period  of  childhood,  he  was  guarded,  guided,  and 
led  forward,  by  unwearied  vigilance  and  devoted  fidelity  on  the  part 
of  his  father  and  mother. 

When  he  was  seven  or  eight  years  of  age,  his  brother  Lawrence, 
having  recently  attained  to  his  majority,  returned  from  England, 
well  educated,  accomplished,  and  with  a  brave  and  manly  character. 
The  large,  fine-looking,  frank,  ingenuous,  and  intelligent  boy,  whose 
opening  virtues  had  already  made  him  an  object  of  especial  tender 
ness  and  pride  to  his  parents,  appears  at  once  to  have  taken  a 
strong  hold  upon  his  affections,  and  we  may  well  believe  that  they 
became  almost  inseparable  companions :  the  one  describing  gayeties 
and  splendors  and  pleasant  or  strange  adventures  he  had  encoun 
tered  in  the  old  world,  where  the  smallest  villages  were  as  imposing 
as  Virginia's  most  populous  towns,  with  their  winding  bridle-path 
connections  reaching  through  primeval  forests,  or  haply  kindling 
at  the  recollection  of  grand  reviews  which  he  had  seen  of  fleets  or 
armies,  or  at  the  anticipation  of  triumphs  which  awaited  England 
in  the  opening  war  with  Spain ;  and  the  other  listening  with  trustful 

*Life  of  Washington,  i.  14. 


26  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1741. 

enthusiasm,  of  all  that  was  to  him  so  new  and  wonderful,  and 
thinking  that  his  accomplished  and  high-minded  brother,  really  so 
superior  to  the  other  young  men  with  whom  he  had  been  ac 
quainted,  was  a  character  entitled  to  his  warmest  admiration,  a 
faultless  model  to  be  studied  and  imitated. 

Discontents  had  been  continually  growing  between  England  and 
Spain  since  the  treaty  of  Seville,  in  1729,  and  at  length  the  conduct 
of  Spain  in  prohibiting  all  foreign  intercourse  with  her  American 
dominions,  and  the  severity  writh  which  she  enforced  this  policy, 
leading  to  the  seizure  of  many  British  subjects,  and  their  condemna 
tion  to  slavery  in  the  mines  of  Potosi,  induced  Sir  Robert  Walpole 
to  consent  to  reprisals.  The  first  display  of  hostility  was  the 
granting  of  letters  of  marque  against  the  Spaniards  in  America. 
Edward  Vernon,  who  had  just  been  advanced  to  the  rank  of  vice 
admiral  of  the  blue,  and  appointed  commander  in  chief  of  all  his 
majesty's  naval  forces  in  the  West  Indies,  had  often  boasted  that 
with  six  ships  only  he  could  take  Porto  Bello,  and  having  gained 
permission  to  make  the  experiment,  by  a  combination  of  extra 
ordinary  temerity  and  good  fortune  he  succeeded.  His  auspicious 
commencement  of  the  wrar  induced  unusual  efforts  for  its  vigorous 
prosecution.  A  more  formidable  armament  was  immediately  placed 
under  Admiral  Yernon's  command,  and  orders  were  given  that  the 
land  forces  despatched  to  Jamaica  under  General  "Wentworth  should 
be  increased  by  a  regiment  of  four  battalions  to  be  raised  in  the 
colonies.  Virginia  entered  with  ardor  into  the  contest.  Her  ancient 
woods  and  rivers  echoed  to  scattered  hamlets  the  inspiring  music  of 
the  fife  and  drum,  and  her  quota  of  men  was  rapidly  assembled  and 
embarked  under  her  popular  governor,  General  Gooch.  In  this 
expedition  Lawrence  Washington  held  the  rank  of  captain.  The 
fleet  at  anchor  before  Jamaica  on  the  first  of  February,  1741,  con 
sisting  of  thirty-one  sail  of  the  line,  wras  the  most  powerful  that 
had  ever  been  collected  in  the  American  seas.  At  a  council  of  war 
composed  of  the  naval  and  military  chiefs  it  was  resolved  to  attack 
Carthagena,  and  on  the  ninth  of  May  an  assault  was  made  upon 
the  forts  guarding  the  approach  to  that  wealthy  and  stately  city. 


^ET.  10.]  THE  SPANISH  WAR.  27 

These  were  carried  with  unexpected  ease,  and  the  sanguine  admiral 
despatched  a  ship  to  England  with  the  intelligence  and  assurances 
that  he  should  take  the  town.  He  was  however  disappointed.  The 
troops  became  sickly,  and  a  feud  existed  between  Yernon  and  Went- 
worth,  each  of  whom  seemed  more  anxious  for  the  disgrace  of  his 
rival  than  for  the  glory  of  his  country.  The  castle  "Bocca  Chica  and 
six  forts  had  been  overcome ;  but  a  single  fort  was  in  the  way  of  a 
complete  triumph ;  and  the  general,  who  had  been  reproached  by  the 
admiral  for  inactivity,  suddenly  determined,  without  consulting  the 
latter,  to  attempt  carrying  it  by  storm ;  the  rash  attempt  failed,  and 
six  hundred  of  the  flower  of  the  army  were  left  dead  before  the 
enemy's  cannon.  The  town  was  next  bombarded  by  the  fleet,  but 
unsuccessfully,  and,  the  rainy  season  setting  in,  the  armament 
returned  to  Jamaica,  with  a  total  loss  in  the  different  engagements 
and  by  sickness  of  more  than  three  thousand  men. 

The  Virginia  troops  remained  in  the  West  Indies  nearly  two 
years,  until  operations  in  that  quarter  were  abandoned.  Captain 
Washington  with  his  company  had  behaved  gallantly  at  Carthagena, 
and  notwithstanding  the  quarrels  of  Wentworth  and  Vernon,  en 
joyed  the  friendly  confidence  of  both  these  commanders.  What 
ever  may  have  been  his  feelings  toward  the  general,  he  regarded 
the  admiral  with  unfaltering  respect  and  affection. 

When  he  came  home  in  the  autumn  of  1742  his  brother  George 
was  nearly  eleven  years  of  age,  and  had  evinced  new  qualities,  cal 
culated  to  endear  him  more  and  more  to  the  young  soldier.  The 
events  of  the  war  had  made  a  profound  impression  on  his  mind,  and 
the  play  ground  by  the  school  house  had  under  his  influence  become 
a  mimic  camp.  Master  Hobby's  boys  were  classified  as  Spanish  and 
English,  and  had  frequent  sham  fights.  The  former  were  commanded 
by  William  Bustle,  and  the  latter  by  George  Washington,  who  was 
always,  when  the  school  was  not  thus  divided,  for  parades,  reviews, 
or  battles,  the  acknowledged  chief  of  the  whole,  by  his  judgment 
guiding  their  conduct,  and  by  his  justice  settling  their  disputes. 

On  leaving  the  army  Lawrence  Washington  had  felt  a  strong 
predilection  for  the  military  profession,  and  during  several  months 


28  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1743. 

had  cherished  an  intention  to  rejoin  his  regiment  in  England ;  but 
becoming  attached  to  Miss  Anne  Fairfax,  eldest  daughter  of  the 
Honorable  William  Fairfax,  of  Fairfax  county,,  he  declared  himself 
her  lover,  was  accepted,  and  the  time  was  appointed  for  their  mar 
riage.  This  event  however  was  deferred  on  account  of  a  sudden 
and  unexpected  misfortune :  Augustine  Washington,  the  father, 
after  a  short  and  painful  attack  of  gout  in  the  stomach,  died  sud 
denly  on  the  twelfth  of  April,  1743,  in  the  forty-ninth  year  of  his 
age. 

Everything  we  know  of  Augustine  Washington  justifies  an 
impression  of  his  dignified  respectability.  Of  a  race  of  gentlemen, 
he  cultivated,  as  has  already  been  stated,  the  manly  pastimes  that 
are  characteristic  of  the  better  classes  of  English  society ;  among 
his  books  was  a  copy  of  Isaac  Walton's  "  Complete  Angler,"  to  read 
wrhich,  says  Charles  Lamb,  "would  at  any  time  swreeten  a  man's 
temper,  and  christianize  every  discordant  passion."  A  memorial  of 
his  addiction  to  field  sports  is  said  to  be  still  existing  in  a  gun  of 
large  size  and  extraordinary  weight,  confirming  traditions  of  his 
commanding  figure  and  muscular  energy.  His  piety  and  the 
kindliness  of  his  nature  are  illustrated  in  reminiscences  of  the 
enlightened  instruction  and  discipline  with  which  he  developed  the 
qualities  of  that  marvellous  boy,  whose  veracity  and  integrity  of 
heart  shone  as  conspicuously  to  him,  during  their  garden  walks,  as 
afterward  to  mankind  when  he  appeared  as  the  leading  character 
in  the  theatre  of  the  world.  That  he  was  industrious  and  judicious 
in  the  care  and  management  of  his  private  affairs  is  evident  from 
the  extent  and  condition  of  his  estate,  which  had  been  mainly 
acquired  by  his  own  thoughtful  activity;  and  his  forecast  and 
method  appeared  in  the  preparation  it  was  found  he  had  made  for 
his  death,  while  it  seemed  very  remote.  To  each  of  his  sons  he 
was  able  to  give  a  separate  plantation.  To  Lawrence,  the  eldest, 
he  bequeathed  that  on  the  Potomac,  containing  twenty-five  hundred 
acres,  since  memorable  and  hallowed  under  the  name  of  Mount 
Vernon,  besides  other  lands,  and  shares  in  productive  iron  works  in 
Virginia  and  Maryland.  To  Augustine,  the  second,  was  left  the 


^ET.  11.]  MARY  WASHINGTON.  29 

old  homestead  of  the  family  at  Pope's  creek.  George  on  becoming 
of  age,  was  to  have  the  house  and  lands  occupied  by  his  father  in 
his  later  years  on  the  Rappahannock,  and  each  of  the  younger  sons 
was  provided  with  an  estate  of  six  or  seven  hundred  acres.  To 
the  only  surviving  daughter,  Betty  Washington,  afterward  Mrs. 
Lewis,  was  also  secured  an  independence. 

Augustine  Washington  by  his  will  declared  his  widow  the  sole 
guardian  of  their  children,  the  only  custodian  of  their  property 
until  they  should  cease  to  be  minors.  A  dying  husband  could 
leave  no  better  praise  of  his  wife.  She  had  not  yet  entered  her 
thirty-eighth  year,  and  having  all  her  life  had  excellent  health,  was 
now  in  the  perfection  of  her  womanhood.  Mr.  Paulding  says  she 
was  described  to  him  by  those  who  knew  her  well,  as  of  ordinary 
stature,  "  once  a  great  belle  and  beauty  in  that  part  of  Virginia. 
High  spirited,  yet  of  great  simplicity  of  manners,  uncommon 
strength  of  mind,  and  decision  of  character,  she  exacted  great 
deference  from  her  sons,  of  whom  George  was  the  favorite."  She 
was  remarkable,  according  to  the  same  author,  for  having  but  a 
single  weakness,  which  was  "an  excessive  fear  of  thunder,  originated 
in  the  melancholy  death  of  a  young  female  friend  who  was  struck 
dead  at  her  side  by  lightning,  when  she  was  about  fifteen  years  old." 
She  was  inflexible  in  the  performance  of  the  ordinary  duties  of  life, 
punctual  in  discharging  the  obligations  of  justice,  and  conscientious 
in  the  observance  of  those  nicer  social  morals  which,  as  they  elude 
definition,  are  often  violated  without  reproach.  "  There  was  a  plain 
honesty  and  truth  about  her,  peculiar  to  that  age,  and  which  has 
been  ill  exchanged  for  empty  professions  and  outward  polish.  As  a 
native  of  Virginia  she  was  hospitable  by  birthright,  and  always 
received  her  visitors  with  a  smiling  welcome ;  but  they  were  never 
asked  to  stay  but  once,  and  she  always  speeded  the  parting  guest 
by  affording  every  facility  in  her  power.  She  possessed  all  those 
domestic  habits  and  qualities  which  confer  value  on  woman,  but  had 
no  desire  to  be  distinguished  by  other  titles  than  those  of  a  good 
wife  and  mother." 

Her  attention,  when  not  occupied  with  the  various  and  compli- 


30  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1743. 

cated  affairs  connected  with  their  several  estates,  was  given  as 
largely  as  possible  to  the  education  of  her  five  young  children,  of 
whom  the  oldest  had  but  just  entered  his  twelfth  year  when  she 
became  a  widow.  One  of  the  means  to  which  she  resorted  for  this 
purpose  was  that  of  reading  to  them  every  day  lessons  of  religion 
and  morality  from  some  standard  author,  and  it  is  known  that  her 
favorite  book  on  such  occasions  was  the  "Contemplations,  Moral  and 
Divine,  by  Sir  Matthew  Hale,  late  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of 
King's  Bench."  The  copy  that  she  used,  in  which  is  written  with 
her  own  hand  her  name,  Mary  Washington,  was  preserved  with 
filial  care  by  her  son,  who  exemplified  in  so  striking  a  manner  its 
admirable  maxims  for  outward  action  as  well  as  self-government,  and 
it  is  still  shown  among  the  cherished  relics  at  Mount  Vernon,  Mr. 
Paulding  remarks  that  one  of  the  chapters  appears  to  have  been 
selected  as  an  ordinary  lesson,  and  is  marked  for  that  purpose  in 
the  table  of  contents.  It  is  entitled  "  The  Great  Audit,"  and  we 
may  well  believe  that  it  had  much  influence  in  the  formation  of 
George  Washington's  character.  Some  parts  of  this  chapter  are  so 
noticeable  for  their  harmony  with  the  life  they  contributed  to  form 
that  it  is  thought  proper  here  to  extract  them.  In  histories  of  the 
development  of  noble  natures  what  more  significant  fact  can  be 
cited  than  that  any  one  of  them  was  guided  and  strengthened  in 
boyhood  by  such  words  as  these : 

"  As  touching  my  conscience,  and  the  light  thou  hast  given  me 
in  it,  I  have  been  very  jealous  of  wounding,  or  grieving,  or  dis 
couraging  or  deadening  it.  I  have  therefore  chosen  rather  to  foster 
that  which  seemed  but  indifferent,  lest  there  should  be  somewhat  in 
it  that  might  be  useful ;  and  would  rather  gratify  my  conscience 
with  being  too  scrupulous  than  displease  or  disquiet  it  by  being  too 
venturous.  I  have  still  chosen,  therefore,  what  might  be  probably 
lawful,  than  to  do  what  might  possibly  be  unlawful ;  because,  though 
I  could  not  err  in  the  former,  I  might  in  the  latter.  If  things  were 
disputable,  whether  they  might  be  done,  I  rather  chose  to  forbear, 
because  the  lawfulness  of  my  forbearance  was  unquestionable. 

"Touching   human   prudence  and  understanding  in  affairs,  and 


^T.  11.]  SIR  MATTHEW  HALE'S  » CONTEMPLATIONS."  31 

dexterity  in  the  arranging  of  them :  I  have  ever  been  careful  to 
mingle  justice  and  honesty  with  my  prudence,  and  have  always 
esteemed  prudence,  actuated  by  injustice  and  falsity,  the  arrantest 
and  most  devilish  practice  in  the  world,  because  it  prostitutes  thy 
gift  to  the  service  of  hell,  and  mingles  a  beam  of  thy  divine  excel 
lence  with  an  extract  of  the  devil's  furnishing,  making  a  man  so 
much  the  worse  by  how  much  he  is  wiser  than  others. 

"  I  always  thought  that  wisdom  which,  in  a  tradesman  or  a  poli 
tician,  was  mingled  with  deceit,  falsity,  and  injustice,  deserved  the 
same  name,  only  the  latter  is  so  much  the  worse,  because  it  is  of 
the  more  public  and  general  concernment.  Yet  because  I  have 
often  observed  great  employments,  especially  in  public  affairs,  are 
sometimes  under  great  temptations  of  mingling  too  much  craft  with 
prudence,  and  then  to  miscall  it  policy,  I  have,  as  much  as  may  be, 
avoided  such  temptations,  and  if  I  have  met  with  them,  I  have 
resolutely  rejected  them. 

"  I  have  always  observed  that  honesty  and  plain-dealing  in  trans 
actions,  as  well  public  as  private,  is  the  best  and  soundest  prudence 
and  policy,  and  commonly,  at  the  long-run,  over-matcheth  craft  and 
subtilty.  And  more  advantage  is  derived  from  possessing  the  con 
fidence  of  mankind,  than  can  ever  be  made  by  deceiving  them. 

"  As  human  prudence  is  abused  if  mingled  with  falsity  and  deceit, 
though  the  end  be  never  so  good,  so  it  is  much  more  debased  if 
directed  to  a  bad  end,  to  the  dishonor  of  thy  name,  the  oppression 
of  thy  people,  the  corrupting  thy  worship  or  truth,  or  to  practise 
any  injustice  toward  any  person. 

"  It  hath  been  my  care  as  not  to  err  in  the  manner,  so  neither  in 
the  end  of  the  exercising  of  thy  providence.  I  have  ever  esteemed 
thy  prudence  best  employed  when  it  was  exercised  in  the  preserva 
tion  and  support  of  thy  truth,  in  contemning,  discovering,  and  dis 
appointing  the  designs  of  evil  and  treacherous  men,  in  delivering 
the  oppressed,  in  righting  the  injured,  in  preventing  of  wars  and 
discord?,  in  preserving  the  public  peace  and  tranquillity  of  the 
people  where  I  live,  and  in  all  those  offices  laid  upon  me  by  thy 
providence,  under  every  relation. 


32  WASHINGTON:  A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1743. 

"  When  my  end  was  most  unquestionably  good,  I  ever  then  took 
most  heed  that  the  means  were  suitable  and  justifiable.  Because 
the  better  the  end  was,  the  more  easily  are  we  cozened  into  the 
use  of  ill  means  to  effect  it.  We  are  too  apt  to  dispense  with  our 
selves  in  the  practice  of  what  is  amiss,  in  order  to  the  accomplish 
ment  of  an  end  that  is  good ;  wre  are  apt,  while  with  great  intense- 
ness  of  mind  we  gaze  upon  the  end,  not  to  take  care  what  course 
we  take  so  we  attain  it ;  and  we  are  apt  to  think  that  God  will  dis 
pense  with,  or  at  least  overlook  the  miscarriages  in  our  attempts,  if 
the  end  be  good. 

"  Because  many  times,  if  not  most  times,  thy  name  and  honor  do 
more  suffer  by  attempting  a  good  end  by  bad  means,  than  by  at 
tempting  both  a  bad  end,  and  by  bad  means.  For  bad  ends  are 
suitable  to  bad  means;  they  are  alike  —  and  it  doth  not  immedi 
ately  as  such  concern  thy  honor.  But  everything  that  is  good  hath 
somewhat  of  thee  in  it,  thy  name,  and  thy  nature,  and  thy  honor  is 
written  upon  it ;  and  the  blemish  that  is  cast  upon  it,  is,  in  some 
measure,  cast  upon  thee.  The  evil,  and  scandal,  and  ugliness  that 
is  in  the  means,  is  cast  upon  the  end,  and  doth  disparage  and  blem 
ish  it,  and,  consequently,  is  dishonor  to  thee.  To  rob  for  burnt- 
offerings,  or  to  lie  for  God,  is  a  greater  disservice  to  thy  majesty, 
than  to  rob  for  rapine,  or  to  lie  for  advantage." 

"  Touching  my  eminence  of  place  and  power  in  this  world,  this  is 
my  account.  I  never  sought  or  desired  it,  and  that  for  these  rea 
sons.  First,  because  I  easily  saw  that  it  was  rather  a  burden  than  a 
privilege.  It  made  my  charge  and  my  account  the  greater,  my 
contentment  and  my  rest  the  less.  I  found  enough  in  it  to  make 
me  decline  it  in  respect  to  myself,  but  not  any  that  could  invite  me 
to  seek  or  desire  it. 

"  That  external  glory  and  splendor  that  attended  it  I  esteemed  as 
vain  and  frivolous  in  itself,  a  bait  to  allure  vain  and  inconsiderate 
persons  to  affect  and  delight — not  valuable  enough  to  invite  a  con 
siderate  judgment  to  desire  or  undertake  it.  I  esteemed  them  as 
the  gilding  that  covers  a  bitter  pill,  and  I  looked  through  this  dress 
and  outside  and  easily  saw  that  it  covered  a  state  obnoxious  to 


Mr.  11.]  SIR  MATTHEW  KALE'S  "CONTEMPLATIONS."  33 

danger,  solicitude,  care,  trouble,  envy,  discontent,  unquietness,  temp 
tation,  and  vexation. 

"  I  esteemed  it  a  condition  which,  if  there  were  any  distempers 
abroad,  they  would  be  infallibly  hunting  and  pushing  at  it ;  and  if 
it  found  any  corruptions  within,  either  of  pride,  vainglory,  insolence, 
vindictiveness,  or  the  like,  it  would  be  sure  to  draw  them  out  and 
set  them  to  work.  And  if  they  prevailed,  it  made  my  power  and 
greatness  not  only  my  burden  but  my  sin ;  if  they  prevailed  not, 
yet  it  required  a  most  watchful,  assiduous,  and  severe  labor  and  in 
dustry  to  suppress  them. 

"When  I  undertook  any  place  of  power  or  eminence,  first,  I 
looked  to  my  call  thereunto  to  be  such  as  I  might  discern  to  be  thy 
call,  not  my  own  ambition.  Second,  that  the  place  was  such  as 
might  be  answered  by  suitable  abilities  in  some  measure  to  perform. 
Third,  that  my  end  in  it  might  not  be  the  satisfaction  of  any  pride, 
ambition,  or  vanity  in  myself,  but  to  serve  Providence  and  my  gen 
eration  honestly  and  faithfully. 

"  In  the  holding  or  exercising  these  places,  I  kept  my  heart  hum 
ble  ;  I  valued  not  myself  one  rush  the  more  for  it.  First,  because  I 
easily  found  that  that  base  affectation  of  pride,  which  commonly  is 
the  fly  that  haunts  such  employments,  would  render  me  dishonora 
ble  to  thy  majesty,  and  discreditable  in  the  employment.  Second, 
because  I  easily  saw  that  great  places  were  slippery  places,  the 
mark  of  envy.  It  was,  therefore,  always  my  care  so  to  behave  in 
them  as  I  might  be  in  a  capacity  to  leave  them ;  and  so  to  leave 
them,  as  that,  when  I  had  left  them,  I  might  have  no  scars  and 
blemishes  stick  upon  me.  I  carried,  therefore,  the  same  evenness 
of  temper  in  holding  them  as  might  become  me  if  I  were  without 
them.  I  found  enough  in  great  employments  to  make  me  sensible 
of  the  danger,  trouble,  and  cares  of  them ;  enough  to  make  me 
humble,  but  not  enough  to  make  me  proud  and  haughty. 

"  I  never  made  use  of  my  power  or  greatness  to  serve  my  own 
turns,  either  to  heap  up  riches,  or  oppress  my  neighbor,  or  to  re 
venge  injuries,  or  to  uphold  injustice.  For,  though  others  thought 

me  great,  I  knew  myself  to  be  still  the  same,  and  in  all  things,  be- 

2 


34  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1743. 

sides  the  due  execution  of  my  place,  my  deportment  was  just  the 
same  as  if  I  had  been  no  such  man ;  for  I  very  Avell  and  practically 
knew  that  place,  and  honor,  and  preferment  are  things  extrinsical, 
and  have  no  ingredience  into  the  man.  His  value  and  estimate  be 
fore,  and  under,  and  after  his  greatness  is  still  the  same  in  itself — 
as  the  counter  that  now  stands  for  a  penny,  anon  for  sixpence,  and 
anon  for  twelve  pence  is  still  the  same  counter,  though  its  place  and 
extrinsical  denomination  be  changed." 

"  Though  I  have  loved  my  reputation,  and  have  been  careful  not 
to  lose  or  impair  it  by  my  own  neglect,  yet  I  have  looked  upon  it 
as  a  brittle  thing  that  the  devil  aims  to  hit  in  an  especial  manner ; 
a  thing  that  is  much  in  the  power  of  a  false  report,  a  mistake,  or 
misapprehension  to  wound  and  hurt,  and  notwithstanding  all  my 
care,  I  am  at  the  mercy  of  others,  without  God's  wonderful  over 
ruling  providence. 

"  And  as  my  reputation  is  the  esteem  that  others  have  of  me,  so 
that  esteem  may  be  blemished  without  my  default.  I  have,  there 
fore,  always  taken  this  care  not  to  set  my  heart  upon  my  reputa 
tion.  I  will  use  all  fidelity  and  honesty,  and  take  care  it  shall  not 
be  lost  by  any  default  of  mine,  and  if,  notwithstanding  all  this,  my 
reputation  be  foiled  by  evil  or  man,  I  will  patiently  bear  it,  and 
content  myself  with  the  serenity  of  my  own  conscience. 

"  When  thy  honor  or  the  good  of  my  country  was  concerned,  I 
then  thought  it  was  a  seasonable  time  to  lay  out  my  reputation  for 
the  advantage  of  either,  and  to  act  with  it,  and  by  it,  and  upon  it, 
to  the  highest,  in  the  use  of  all  lawful  means.  And  upon  such  an 
occasion,  the  counsel  of  Mordecai  to  Esther  was  my  encouragement, 
— 'Who  Jcnoweth  whether  God  hath  not  given  thee  this  reputation  and  esteem 
for  such  a  time  as  this  ?J " 

These  sentences  might  readily  be  taken  for  a  reviewal  by  Wash 
ington  of  his  own  history. 


12.]  SCHOOL  OF  MR.  WTLLIAMS.  35 


CHAPTER  III. 

WASHINGTON  AT  MR.  WILLIAMS'S   SCHOOL HIS  PREEMINENCE  AMONG  THE  PUPILS 

SPORTS    AND    ATHLETIC    EXERCISES PRACTICAL    STUDIES FORMS    OF    WRI 
TING RULES  OF  CONVERSATION  AND  BEHAVIOR  IN  COMPANY HIS  CHARACTER 

FORMED  BY  SELF-DISCIPLINE. 

THE  marriage  of  Lawrence  Washington  with  Miss  Fairfax  was 
followed  by  that  of  his  brother  Augustine  with  Anne  Aylett,  daughter 
of  Mr.  William  Aylett,  a  gentleman  of  wealth  and  social  eminence 
in  Westmoreland  county.  Augustine  Washington  established  him 
self  in  the  house  where  he  was  born,  on  the  domain  of  his  ancestors 
at  Pope's  Creek.  He  had  less  inclination  than  his  elder  brother  for 
public  life,  and  found  the  satisfaction  of  his  desires  in  the  delights 
of  home,  the  care  of  his  estate,  and  such  interchange  of  neigh 
borly  courtesies  as  then  prevailed  among  the  planters  of  Virginia. 
Partly  perhaps  for  anticipated  pleasures  from  his  society,  but  mainly 
for  the  greater  advantages  of  education  which  might  there  be 
offered  him,  he  invited  his  half  brother  George  to  become  a  member 
of  his  family,  and  Mrs.  Washington  having  consented  to  this  arrange 
ment,  the  pupil  of  Master  Hobby,  who  was  no  longer  capable  of  in 
structing  him,  was  transferred  to  the  school  of  Mr.  Williams,  reputed 
to  be  one  of  the  best  of  its  class  in  the  colony.  Many  years  after, 
when  the  hero  was  in  the  zenith  of  his  fame,  it  was  the  frequent 
boast  of  Hobby  that  he  had  "  laid  the  foundation  of  his  greatness," 
but  it  was  reserved  for  Mr.  Williams  to  guide  his  quick  intelligence 
and  persevering  will  through  those  common  and  practical  studies 
which  were  best  adapted  to  the  development  of  his  peculiar  faculties 
and  the  most  suitable  preparation  for  his  future  career. 

His  new  companions  quickly  discovered  and  acknowledged  the 
superiority  of  his  abilities  and  his  elevation  and  force  of  character. 
They  yielded  him  the  deference  he  had  won  from  the  younger  boys 


36  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1744. 

on  the  Rappahannock.  Their  confidence  in  his  judgment  and 
probity  was  such  that  his  decisions  in  all  matters  of  disagreement 
were  received  with  unhesitating  acquiescence  and  satisfaction,  and 
his  courage  and  firmness  were  so  well  understood  that  he  never 
suffered  insult  or  wrong  from  even  the  most  unscrupulous  of  his 
school  fellows.  Boys  sometimes  acquire  certain  immunities  and 
shows  of  respect  by  simply  being  unsocial  or  manifesting  an  un 
willingness  to  share  in  sports  which  are  usual  at  their  age ;  but  this 
was  not  the  case  with  young  Washington ;  at  thirteen  not  only  his 
demeanor  but  his  height  and  well  knit  frame  indicated  a  life  much 
more  advanced,  and  his  associates  who  were  superior  in  years,  as 
well  as  those  who  were  younger,  spontaneously  recognised  him  as 
the  leader  in  all  their  games  and  exploits.  He  could  leap,  run, 
wrestle,  pitch  the  bar,  or  toss  the  quoit,  with  the  strongest  and  the 
most  skilful,  and  though  keenly  enjoying  these  active  exercises, 
bore  the  triumphs  which  they  brought  him  with  so  amiable  a  grace 
as  to  provoke  no  jealousies,  no  rivalries,  but  only  a  generous  emu 
lation. 

In  the  schoolroom  all  these  pastimes  and  excitements  were  for 
gotten,  and  if  he  failed  of  his  out-door  preeminence  he  was  at  least 
distinguished  for  such  method  and  diligence  as  secured  him  an 
honorable  place  in  his  class.  Of  the  degree  of  his  improvement  in 
the  different  branches  of  education  not  much  is  certainly  known. 
At  thirteen  he  had  become  a  proficient  in  arithmetic,  and  entered 
upon  the  study  of  geometry.  His  manuscript  school  books,  from 
this  period,  have  been  preserved,  and  are  remarkable  for  neatness 
and  accuracy,  as  well  as  for  the  nature  of  their  contents.  The 
earliest  of  them  is  occupied  with  forms  of  mercantile  and  legal 
papers,  such  as  receipts,  notes  of  hand,  bills  of  exchange,  bonds, 
mortgages,  deeds,  indentures,  land  warrants,  leases,  and.  wills,  written 
out  with  care,  and  with  the  prominent  words  in  varied  and  striking 
characters  such  as  are  used  by  scriveners.  The  fact  that  any  boy 
so  young  should  practise  these  dry  business  details  for  amusement 
or  as  a  voluntary  preparation  for  active  life  would  attract  attention 
for  its  singularity  and  suggestiveness.  All  we  know  of  the  early 


MT.  13.]  CLERKLY  ACCOMPLISHMENTS.  37 

days  of  Washington  indicates,  if  not  a  particular  interposition  of 
Providence  to  prepare  him  for  his  high  calling,  at  least  a  discipline 
of  his  powers  and  passions  so  admirably  fitted  for  that  end  as  to 
justify  our  special  wonder.  These  clerkly  accomplishments,  thus 
acquired,  at  the  only  period  in  which  he  had  time  or  opportunity 
for  their  acquisition,  were  of  inestimable  importance  to  him  and  to 
the  country  in  subsequent  years.  They  enabled  him  to  draft  docu 
ments  with  a  lawyer's  skill,  and  to  keep  accounts  with  a  merchant's 
exactness ;  and  his  concerns  with  his  various  estates,  his  dealings 
with  his  domestic  stewards  and  foreign  agents,  his  transactions  with 
government,  and  all  his  pecuniary  affairs,  are  thus  recorded  in  his  own 
handwriting  down  to  the  week  of  his  death.  Those  who  consider 
intelligently  the  difficulties  and  responsibilities  of  his  earlier  and 
later  military  and  civil  administrations  will  not  doubt  that  much  of 
his  success  resulted  from  the  strict  and  methodical  habits  of  business 
which  he  maintained  through  his  whole  life,  and  it  will  be  admitted 
that  the  purity  of  his  fame  is  in  a  large  degree  attributable  to  that 
persevering  industry  which  enabled  him  to  leave  for  the  study  of 
posterity  such  particular  and  perspicuous  demonstrations  of  his 
integrity  in  the  most  inconsiderable  as  well  as  the  most  important 
affairs  in  which  he  was  ever  engaged. 

Another  and  more  noticeable  portion  of  this  manuscript  volume 
is  a  series  of  practical  maxims  for  the  government  of  conduct  in 
society.  Mr.  Sparks  supposes  they  were  drawn  from  miscellaneous 
sources,  and  Mr.  Everett  that  they  were  transcribed  from  some 
manual  of  good-manners.  The  only  evidence  however  that  they 
were  not  composed  by  Washington  himself  appears  to  be  that  they 
have  a  certain  precision  and  maturity  of  style  to  which  he  had  not 
attained  at  the  period  in  which  the  handwriting  shows  that  they 
were  copied  into  the  book.  No  trace  of  any  collection  of  such 
rules  from  which  they  could  have  been  borrowed  has  been  discov 
ered.  The  series  consists  of  one  hundred  and  ten  paragraphs,  of 
which  Mr.  Sparks  selects  the  following : 

"  1.  Every  action  in  company  ought  to  be  with  some  sign  of 
respect  to  those  present. 


38  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1745. 

"  2.  In  the  presence  of  others,  sing  not  to  yourself  with  a  hum 
ming  noise,  nor  drum  with  your  fingers  or  feet. 

"  3.  Speak  not  when  others  speak,  sit  not  when  others  stand,  and 
walk  not  when  others  stop. 

"  4.  Turn  not  your  back  to  others,  especially  in  speaking ;  jog  not  the 
table  or  desk  on  which  another  reads  or  writes ;  lean  not  on  any  one. 

"  5.  Be  no  flatterer,  neither  play  with  any  one  that  delights  not 
to  be  played  with. 

"  6.  Read  no  letters,  books,  or  papers  in  company ;  but  when 
there  is  a  necessity  for  doing  it,  you  must  ask  leave.  Come  not 
near  the  books  or  writings  of  any  one  so  as  to  read  them,  unasked ; 
also,  look  not  nigh  when  another  is  writing  a  letter. 

"  7.  Let  your  countenance  be  pleasant,  but  in  serious  matters 
somewhat  grave. 

"  8.  Show  not  yourself  glad  at  the  misfortune  of  another,  though 
he  were  your  enemy. 

"  9.  They  that  are  in  dignity  or  office  have  in  all  places  prece 
dency  ;  but  whilst  they  are  young,  they  ought  to  respect  those  that 
are  their  equals  in  birth  or  other  qualities,  though  they  have  no 
public  charge. 

"  10.  It  is  good  manners  to  prefer  them  to  whom  we  speak  before 
ourselves,  especially  if  they  be  above  us,  with  whom,  in  no  sort,  we 
ought  to  begin. 

"  11.  Let  your  discourse  with  men  of  business  be  short  and  com 
prehensive. 

"  12.  In  visiting  the  sick,  do  not  presently  play  the  physician,  if 
you  be  not  knowing  therein. 

"  13.  In  writing  or  speaking,  give  to  every  person  his  due  title, 
according  to  his  degree  and  the  custom  of  the  place. 

"  14.  Strive  not  with  your  superiors  in  argument,  but  always 
submit  your  judgment  to  others  with  modesty. 

"  15.  Undertake  not  to  teach  your  equal  in  the  art  himself  pro 
fesses  ;  it  savors  of  arrogancy. 

"  16.  When  a  man  does  all  he  can,  though  it  succeeds  not  well, 
blame  not  him  that  did  it. 


Mr.  13.]  RULES  OF  BEHAVIOR.  39 

"  17.  Being  to  advise  or  reprehend  any  one,  consider  whether  it 
ought  to  be  in  public  or  in  private,  presently  or  at  some  other  time, 
also  in  what  terms  to  do  it ;  and  in  reproving,  show  no  signs  of 
choler,  but  do  it  with  sweetness  and  mildness. 

"  18.  Mock  not,  nor  jest  at  anything  of  importance ;  break  no 
jests  that  are  sharp  or  biting,  and  if  you  deliver  anything  witty  or 
pleasant,  abstain  from  laughing  thereat  yourself. 

"  19.  Wherein  you  reprove  another  be  unblamable  yourself,  for 
example  is  more  prevalent  than  precept. 

"  20.  Use  no  reproachful  language  against  any  one,  neither  curses 
nor  revilings. 

"  21.  Be  not  hasty  to  believe  flying  reports,  to  the  disparagement 
of  any  one. 

"  22.  In  your  apparel  be  modest,  and  endeavor  to  accommodate 
nature  rather  than  procure  admiration.  Keep  to  the  fashion  of 
your  equals,  such  as  are  civil  and  orderly  with  respect  to  time  and 
place. 

"23.  Play  not  the  peacock,  looking  everywhere  about  you  to 
see  if  you  be  well  decked,  if  your  shoes  fit  well,  if  your  stockings 
sit  neatly,  and  clothes  handsomely. 

"  24.  Associate  yourself  with  men  of  good  quality  if  you  esteem 
your  own  reputation,  for  it  is  better  to  be  alone  than  in  bad  com 
pany. 

66  25.  Let  your  conversation  be  without  malice  or  envy,  for  it  is  a 
sign  of  a  tractable  and  commendable  nature,  and  in  all  causes  of 
passion  admit  reason  to  govern. 

"  26.  Be  not  immodest  in  urging  your  friend  to  discover  a  secret. 

"27.  Utter  not  base  and  frivolous  things  amongst  grown  and 
learned  men:  nor  very  difficult  questions  or  subjects  amongst  the 
ignorant,  nor  things  hard  to  be  believed. 

"28.  Speak  not  of  doleful  things  in  time  of  mirth,  nor  at  the 
table:  speak  not  of  melancholy  things,  as  death  and  wounds,  and 
if  others  mention  them,  change,  if  you  can,  the  discourse.  Tell  not 
your  dreams  but  to  your  intimate  friends. 

"29.  Break  not  a  jest  where  none  take  pleasure  in  mirth.     Laugh 


40  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1745. 

not  aloud,  nor  at  all  without  occasion.  Deride  no  man's  misfortune, 
though  there  seem  to  be  some  cause. 

"  30.  Speak  not  injurious  words,  neither  in  jest  or  earnest.  Scoff 
at  none,  although  they  give  occasion. 

"31.  Be  not  forward,  but  friendly  and  courteous,  the  first  to 
salute,  hear  and  answer,  and  be  not  pensive  when  it  is  a  time  to 
converse. 

"  32.  Detract  not  from  others,  but  neither  be  excessive  in  com 
mending. 

"33.  Go  not  thither,  where  you  know  not  whether  you  shall  be 
welcome  or  not.  Give  not  advice  without  being  asked,  and  when 
desired,  do  it  briefly. 

"  34.  If  two  contend  together,  take  not  the  part  of  either  uncon 
strained,  and  be  not  obstinate  in  your  opinion :  in  things  indifferent 
be  of  the  major  side. 

u  35.  Reprehend  not  the  imperfections  of  others,  for  that  belongs 
to  parents,  masters,  and  superiors. 

"36.  Gaze  not  on  the  marks  or  blemishes  of  others,  and  ask  not 
how  they  came.  What  you  may  speak  in  secret  to  your  friend, 
deliver  not  before  others. 

"  37.  Speak  not  in  an  unknown  tongue  in  company,  but  in  your 
own  language ;  and  that  as  those  of  quality  do,  and  not  as  the 
vulgar.  Sublime  matters  treat  seriously. 

"  38.  Think  before  you  speak  •  pronounce  not  imperfectly,  nor 
bring  out  your  words  too  hastily,  but  orderly  and  distinctly. 

"  39.  When  another  speaks,  be  attentive  yourself,  and  disturb  not 
the  audience.  If  any  hesitate  in  his  words,  help  him  not,  nor 
prompt  him  without  being  desired ;  interrupt  him  not,  nor  answer 
him  till  his  speech  be  ended. 

"  40.  Treat  with  men  at  fit  times  about  business,  and  whisper  not 
in  the  company  of  others. 

"  41.  Make  no  comparisons,  and  if  any  of  the  company  be  com 
mended  for  any  brave  act  of  virtue,  commend  not  another  for  the 
same. 

"  42.  Be  not  apt  to  relate  news,  if  you  know  not  the  truth  thereof. 


Mf.  13.]  RULES  OF  BEHAVIOR.  41 

In  discoursing  of  things  you  have  heard,  name  not  your  author 
always.  A  secret  discover  not. 

"  43.  Be  not  curious  to  know  the  affairs  of  others,  neither  ap 
proach  to  those  that  speak  in  private. 

"  44.  Undertake  not  what  you  can  not  perform ;  but  be  careful 
to  keep  your  promise. 

"  45.  When  you  deliver  a  matter,  do  it  without  passion  and  indis 
cretion,  however  mean  the  person  may  be  you  do  it  to. 

"  46.  When  your  superiors  talk  to  anybody,  hear  them,  neither 
speak  nor  laugh. 

"  47.  In  disputes,  be  not  so  desirous  to  overcome  as  not  to  give 
liberty  to  each  one  to  deliver  his  opinion,  and  submit  to  the  judg 
ment  of  the  major  part,  especially  if  they  are  judgers  of  the 
dispute. 

"  48.  Be  not  tedious  in  discourse,  make  not  many  digressions,  nor 
repeat  often  the  same  matter  of  discourse. 

"  49.  Speak  no  evil  of  the  absent,  for  it  is  unjust. 

"  50.  Be  not  angry  at  table  whatever  happens,  and  if  you  have 
reason  to  be  so,  show  it  not,  put  on  a  cheerful  countenance,  espe 
cially  if  there  be  strangers,  for  good  humor  makes  one  dish  a  feast. 

"51.  Set  not  yourself  at  the  upper  end  of  the  table,  but  if  it  be 
your  due,  or  the  master  of  the  house  will  have  it  so,  contend  not, 
lest  you  should  trouble  the  company. 

"  52.  When  you  speak  of  God  or  his  attributes,  let  it  be  seriously 
in  reverence  and  honor,  and  obey  your  natural  parents. 

"  53.  Let  your  recreations  be  manful,  not  sinful. 

"  54.  Labor  to  keep  alive  in  your  breast  that  little  spark  of  celes 
tial  fire,  called  conscience." 

These  rules  show  an  instinctive  and  thorough  appreciation 
of  the  principles  of  courtesy  and  propriety,  and  the  conformity 
of  Washington's  own  conduct  with  their  spirit  during  all  his  life 
proves  that  he  adopted  them  as  an  imperative  law  for  the  gov 
ernment  of  his  deportment.  Other  rules  in  the  collection  are 
trivial,  or  suited  only  to  form  the  habits  of  a  child,  but  all,  how 
ever  quaint  or  formal  or  circumstantial,  are  essentially  just,  and 


42  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1745. 

excellently  adapted  for  the  control  of  an  impulsive  and  ardent 
temper.  Chief  Justice  Marshall,  who  had  failed  to  discover  them 
during  his  own  diligent  researches  respecting  the  life  of  Washington, 
on  reading  them  in  the  pages  of  Mr.  Sparks,  expressed  his  convic 
tion  that  they  were  the  most  interesting  and  important  revelation 
that  had  been  made  of  the  constitution  of  his  character.  Mr. 
Sparks  himself  says,  that  "  in  studying  the  character  of  Washington 
it  is  obvious  that  this  code  of  rules  had  an  influence  upon  his  whole 
life.  His  temperament  was  ardent,  his  passions  strong,  and,  amidst 
the  multiplied  scenes  of  temptation  and  excitement  through  which 
he  passed  it  was  his  constant  effort  and  ultimate  triumph  to  check 
the  one  and  subdue  the  other.  His  intercourse  with  men,  public 
and  private,  in  every  walk  and  station,  wras  marked  with  a  consist 
ency,  a  fitness  to  occasions,  a  dignity,  decorum,  condescension,  and 
mildness,  a  respect  for  the  claims  of  others,  and  a  delicate  percep 
tion  of  the  nicer  shades  of  civility,  which  were  not  more  the  dictates 
of  his  native  good  sense  and  incomparable  judgment,  than  the 
fruits  of  a  long  and  unwearied  discipline." 


.  14.]  EARLY  ASSOCIATIONS.  43 


CHAPTER   IV. 

WASHINGTON'S  YOUTHFUL  ASSOCIATIONS — HIS  MARTIAL  SPIRIT — OBTAINS  A  MID 
SHIPMAN'S  WARRANT HIS  MOTHER'S    OBJECTIONS    TO   HIS  ENTERING  THE   NAVY 

HE     RETURNS     TO     MR.    WILLIAMS'S      SCHOOL INSTRUCTED    IN     THE    MANUAL 

EXERCISE    BY  ADJUTANT    MUSE A  YOUTHFUL    PASSION THE    FAIRFAX    FAMILY 

LORD    FAIRFAX HUNTING A    SURVEYING    EXPEDITION    PROPOSED. 

WHILE  George  Washington  remained  a  pupil  of  Mr.  Williams  the 
school  vacations  and  perhaps  some  additional  portions  of  the  time 
were  passed  with  his  mother  or  with  his  brother  Lawrence  at  Mount 
Yernon.  Since  the  death  of  their  father  Lawrence  had  evinced  for 
him  a  still  warmer  affection  and  had  taken  a  truly  paternal  interest 
in  his  affairs.  Such  society  as  he  was  likely  to  meet  at  Mount 
Vernon  could  hardly  fail  of  strengthening  his  boyish  predilections 
for  a  military  life.  The  materials  of  much  of  the  conversation  he 
had  heard  in  the  family  circle  from  his  earliest  years  had  been 
drawn  from  the  French  and  Indian  wars  in  which  the  colonists 
had  been  so  frequently  involved,  from  the  first  settlement  of  the 
country,  and,  as  his  mind  expanded,  the  battles  and  sieges  in  which 
his  brother  had  been  engaged  in  the  West  Indies  had  made  him 
familiar  with  the  pomp  and  circumstance  of  a  higher  -and  more 
fascinating  martial  experience.  Lawrence  Washington  was  now  a 
leading  character  in  Westmoreland  county,  a  member  of  the  house 
of  burgesses,  and  adjutant  general  of  the  district.  His  father-in-law, 
the  Honorable  William  Fairfax,  had  also  been  a  soldier,  and  had 
served  with  distinction  many  years  in  various  parts  of  the  world. 
His  seat,  called  Belvoir,  was  but  a  few  miles  away,  down  the  river, 
and  the  two  families  were  in  habits  of  frequent  and  familiar  inter 
course.  George  Washington  appears  to  have  been  a  favorite  guest 
at  Belvoir,  where,  as  well  as  at  Mount  Yernon,  he  must  sometimes 


44  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1746. 

have  met  the  companions  in  arms  of  Mr.  Fairfax  and  his  brother 
Lawrence,  or  other  officers  of  the  army  or  navy,  brought  into  the 
Potomac  upon  the  public  service.  Scenes  of  chivalry  and  intrepidity 
on  land  and  sea,  stories  of  cruisings  in  the  East  and  West  Indies, 
and  campaigns  against  pirates  or  barbarian  or  civilized  armies, 
repeated  or  debated  at  the  table,  kindled  his  enthusiasm  and  shaped 
his  ambition,  until  the  quiet  life  of  a  planter,  for  which  he  had  been 
intended,  ceased  to  have  any  strong  attractions  for  his  youthful  and 
adventurous  spirit. 

Observing  the  development  in  him  of  a  taste  and  temper  so 
congenial  with  his  own,  and  regarding  the  navy  as  more  probable 
than  the  army  to  lead  to  distinction,  Lawrence  Washington,  in  1746, 
when  he  was  about  fourteen  years  of  age,  proposed  to  his  mother 
to  send  him  to  sea  as  a  midshipman.  Mr.  Fairfax  entered  into  the 
scheme,  and  on  the  tenth  of  September  in  that  year  wrote  to  his 
son-in-law :  "  George  has  been  with  us,  and  says  he  will  thankfully 
follow  your  advice.,  as  his  best  friend ....  I  have  spoken  to  Dr. 
Spencer,  who  I  find  is  often  at  the  widow's/'  and  has  some  influence, 
to  persuade  her  to  think  better  of  your  advice  of  putting  George 
to  sea."  Mrs.  Washington  reluctantly  and  after  much  persuasion 
consented;  a  midshipman's  warrant  was  obtained;  the  youth  en 
tered  with  a  buoyant  spirit  upon  preparations  for  his  departure,  and 
it  is  said  that  his  luggage  was  actually  on  board  a  man  of  war 
anchored  in  the  river,  when  his  mother  relented.  On  the  eighteenth 
of  October  a  friend  of  the  family,  Mr.  Robert  Jackson,  wrote  to 
Lawrence  Washington  from  Fredericksburg :  "I  am  afraid  Mrs. 
Washington  vill  not  keep  up  to  her  first  resolution.  She  seems  to 
intimate  a  dislike  to  George's  going  to  sea,  and  says  several  persons 
have  told  her  it  was  a  bad  scheme.  She  offers  several  trifling 
objections,  such  as  fond  unthinking  mothers  habitually  suggest; 
and  I  find  that  one  word  against  his  going  has  more  weight  than 
ten  for  it.  Colonel  Fairfax  seems  desirous  he  should  go,  and  wished 
me  to  acquaint  you  with  Mrs.  Washington's  sentiments.  I  intend 
shortly  to  take  an  opportunity  to  talk  with  her,  and  will  let  you 

*  Mrs.  Washington's. 


JEr.  14.]  PROJECT  OF  ENTERING  THE  NAVY.  45 

know  the  result."     This  result  was  a  jtersistence  in  her  objections, 
and  the  plan  was  abandoned. 

It  was  one  of  the  grand  turning  points  in  Washington's  life,  and 
if  there  is  a  providence  in  the  affairs  of  men  it  can  hardly  be 
doubted  that  the  mother's  heart  was  swayed  on  this  occasion,  as  Mr. 
Upham  suggests,  by  a  divine  impulse.  A  strong  current  of  maternal 
tenderness  and  anxiety  is  made  to  pour  over  her  soul,  filling  it  with 
a  timidity  which  does  not  appear  to  have  been  natural  or  habitual 
to  her,  rendering  her  insensible  to  the  persuasions  of  all  around  her, 
and  leading  her  to  rescue  her  son  from  a  step  that  might  have 
changed  the  destinies  of  half  the  world.  "  Shall  his  feet  quit  the 
firm  soil  of  his  country !"  exclaims  Mr.  Everett ;  "  shall  he  enter  a 
line  of  duty  and  promotion,  in  which,  if  he  escape  the  hazards  and 
gain  the  prizes  of  his  career,  he  can  scarce  fail  to  be  carried  to 
distant  scenes — to  bestow  his  energies  on  foreign  expeditions,  in 
remote  seas,  perhaps  in  another  hemisphere — in  which  he  will 
certainly  fail  of  the  opportunity  of  preparing  himself,  in  the  camp 
and  field  of  the  approaching  war,  to  command  the  armies  of  the 
revolution,  and  not  improbably  sink  under  the  pestilential  climate 
of  the  West  Indies  and  the  Spanish  main?  Such  indeed  seems 
almost  inevitably  his  career.  He  desires  it ;  his  brother,  standing 
in  the  place  of  a  father,  approves  it ;  the  warrant  is  obtained.  But 
nothing  could  overcome  the  invincible  repugnance  of  his  widowed 
mother.  She  saw  only  the  dangers  which  awaited  the  health,  the 
morals,  and  the  life  of  her  favorite  child ;  and  her  influence  pre 
vailed.  Thus  the  voice  of  his  high  destiny  first  spoke  to  the  affec 
tions  of  the  youthful  hero,  through  the  fond  yearnings  of  a  mother's 
heart.  He  was  saved  to  the  country." 

Washington  returned  to  Mr.  Williams's  school,  and  continued 
there  more  than  a  year,  devoting  his  attention  chiefly  to  mathe 
matical  studies,  especially  geometry  and  trigonometry,  and  to  prac 
tical  surveying,  with  the  view  of  becoming  familiar  with  the  appli 
cation  of  principles  and  the  use  of  instruments.  He  made  surveys 
about  the  neighborhood,  and  kept  regular  field  books,  in  which  the 
boundaries  and  measurements  of  the  grounds  surveyed  were  care- 


46  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1747. 

fully  entered,  with  diagrams,  as  neatly  and  exactly  as  if  they  were 
intended  to  be  guides  in  important  transfers  of  property. 

After  leaving  school,  where,  it  is  said,  he  was  so  much  beloved 
and  respected  by  his  companions  that  they  parted  from  him  with 
tears,  he  went  to  reside  with  his  brother  Lawrence  at  Mount  Yernon, 
but  passed  some  portions  of  his  time  with  his  mother  near  Frede- 
ricksburg,  and  with  the  Fairfax  family  at  Belvoir. 

He  had  not  given  up  all  thoughts  of  being  a  soldier,  and  as 
opportunities  presented,  or  leisure  from  the  severer  science  to  which 
he  still  applied  himself,  he  studied  the  principles  of  w^ar,  and 
acquired  great  dexterity  in  the  manual  exercise,  with  a  certain 
Adjutant  Muse,  who  had  accompanied  Captain  Washington  in  the 
expedition  against  Carthagena.  He  also  became  an  expert  fencer, 
under  the  instruction  of  a  Frenchman  named  Van  Braam,  who 
afterwards  was  his  interpreter,  on  his  first  expedition  to  the  Ohio. 

At  fifteen  he  was  tall  and  finely  proportioned,  firmly  knit  and 
agile  as  a  young  athlete,  and  had  an  intrepidity  of  spirit  and  dignity 
of  demeanor  suitable  for  an  age  yet  more  advanced  than  that  to 
which  he  seemed  to  have  attained.  He  had  been  little  used  to 
the  society  of  the  drawing  room,  and  was  now,  as  for  many  years 
afterwards,  apt  to  be  silent  and  embarrassed  in  the  presence  of 
women.  He  preferred  the  bold  brave  life  of  the  fields,  the  solitary 
quests  of  the  hunter,  the  manly  games  which  were  a  test  of  skill  as 
well  as  strength,  or  those  equestrian  exercises  in  which  he  excelled 
all  his  youthful  associates.  These  tastes  were  inherited  in  a  degree 
from  both  his  parents.  His  mother,  Mr.  Paulding  tells  us,  was  very 
fond  of  fine  horses,  so  much  so  that  on  one  occasion  when  she 
became  possessed  of  a  pair  of  handsome  grays,  she  had  them  turned 
out  to  pasture  in  a  meadow  before  her  house,  that  she  might  at  all 
hours  see  them  from  the  windows  of  her  sitting  room.  It  chanced 
that  at  one  time  she  owned  a  handsome  and  spirited  young  horse 
which  had  never  been  broken  to  the  saddle,  and  which  no  one  was 
permitted  to  ride.  A  party  of  her  son's  friends,  spending  the  day 
with  him,  proposed  after  dinner  to  mount  the  colt  and  make  the 
circuit  of  the  field.  No  one  could  accomplish  the  feat,  and  several 


Mr.  15.]  THE  FAIRFAX  FAMILY.  47 

were  baffled  in  attempting  to  mount,  or  thrown  from  the  animal's  back 
afterwards.  Young  Washington  however  succeeded,  and  gave  the 
favorite  such  a  breathing  that  he  at  length  fell  dead  under  his  rider, 
who  immediately  went  and  told  his  mother  of  the  misfortune.  Her 
reply  was  characteristic.  "  George,"  said  she,  "  I  forgive  you,  because 
you  have  had  the  courage  to  tell  the  truth,  at  once ;  had  you 
skulked  away,  I  should  have  despised  you." 

Notwithstanding  his  shyness  and  the  little  pleasure  he  seems  to 
have  found  in  female  society  it  appears  from  copies  of  verses  still 
preserved  in  the  waste  pages  of  his  manuscript  school  books,  and 
from  other  records,  as  well  as  from  traditions,  that  he  did  not  escape 
that  sad  but  sweet  disease  to  which  every  youth  is  more  or  less 
exposed,  and  which  is  rarely  cured  except  by  the  homoeopathic  law 
of  similia  similibus.  While  staying  at  his  brother  Augustine's, 
before  he  was  fifteen  years  of  age,  he  was  captivated  by  the  charms 
of  some  rural  beauty,  whose  image  he  bore  in  his  heart  long  after 
his  removal  to  other  scenes.  It  is  not  known  that  he  ever  declared 
his  passion,  and  it  is  doubtful  who  was  its  object,  though  Mr.  Irving 
mentions  an  impression  which  prevails  in  Virginia  that  she  was  a 
Miss  Grimes  of  Westmoreland,  afterwards  Mrs.  Lee,  the  mother  of 
Colonel  Henry  Lee,  the  Light  Horse  Harry  of  Lee's  Legion,  "  who 
was  always  a  favorite  with  Washington,  probably  from  the  recollec 
tions  of  his  early  tenderness  for  the  mother." 

The  society  to  which  Washington  was  accustomed  was  eminently 
refined,  intelligent  and  chivalric.  There  was  in  Virginia  none  more 
truly  elegant.  The  characters  of  his  elder  brothers  have  been 
indicated  in  preceding  pages.  When  not  with  them,  or  his  mother, 
as  stately  as  she  was  fond  and  wise,  he  was  generally  with  the 
Fairfaxes.  The  family  of  Lord  Fairfax  was  one  of  the  most  an 
cient  and  distinguished  in  the  British  aristocracy.  It  was  of  Anglo 
Saxon  origin,  and  was  settled  in  Northumberland  before  the  con 
quest.  The  first  peer  was  created  Baron  Fairfax  of  Cameron  in 
Scotland,  in  1627.  The  third  was  the  celebrated  republican  general 
who  defeated  the  king's  troops  at  Naseby.  Thomas,  the  sixth  lord, 
inherited  from  his  mother  a  daughter  of  Lord  Colepepper,  formerly 


48  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1748. 

governor  of  Virginia,  a  splendid  fortune,  consisting  of  several 
manors  in  Kent,  estates  in  the  isle  of  Wight,  and  the  vast  tract  of 
land  called  the  Northern  Neck,  between  the  Potomac  and  Rappa- 
hannock  rivers  in  Virginia,  which  was  estimated  to  contain  five 
million  and  seven  hundred  thousand  acres.  From  his  father  he 
received  Fenton  Hall  and  other  property  in  Yorkshire,  but  was 
induced  by  his  mother  and  grandmother  to  sell  it  in  order  to 
redeem  the  Colepepper  manor.  He  had  been  educated  at  Oxford, 
and  afterwards  held  a  commission  in  the  Horse  Guards,  and  Mr. 
Irving,  following  Mr.  Sparks,  states  that  he  acquired  distinction  in 
literature  by  contributing  several  papers  to  the  Spectator.*  His 
career  as  a  man  of  fashion  is  said  to  have  been  suddenly  brought  to 
a  close  by  an  affair  of  the  heart.  A  young  lady  of  rank  accepted 
his  offer  of  marriage,  and  every  preparation  had  been  made  for  the 
wedding  and  for  the  matrimonial  establishment,  when  she  changed 
her  mind,  fascinated  by  the  superior  brilliancy  of  a  ducal  coronet. 
After  this  he  was  comparatively  unknown  in  the  gay  world  of 
London,  and  about  1739,  when  he  had  entered  upon  his  fiftieth 
year,  made  a  voyage  to  Virginia,  to  examine  his  immense  domain 
there,  and  was  so  captivated  with  the  soil,  climate,  scenery,  and 
other  attractions  of  the  country,  that  he  resolved  to  make  it  his 
home  for  the  remainder  of  his  life.  He  therefore  returned  to 
England  to  arrange  his  affairs,  and  in  1748  had  recently  arrived  a 
second  time  in  the  colony  to  carry  into  effect  his  purposes. 

Lord  Fairfax  was  large,  more  than  six  feet  high,  sharp  featured, 
with  an  aquiline  nose,  and  a  swarthy  complexion.  At  sixty  he 
retained  all  the  muscular  energy  of  youth,  and,  when  his  eccentric 
humor  prompted,  much  of  its  vivacity.  After  spending  a  short  time 
with  his  cousin,  William  Fairfax,  at  Belvoir,  he  established  himself 
in  the  wilderness,  at  a  place  which  he  named  Greenway  Court,  about 
twelve  miles  from  the  present  town  of  Winchester,  where  he  con 
tinued  ever  afterwards  to  reside  and  to  maintain  a  baronial  hos 
pitality. 

*  This  however  may  be  doubted,  as  his  name  docs  not  appear  to  be  mentioned  by  any  of  the 
editors  of  that  work. 


JEr.  15.]  LORD  FAIRFAX.  49 

His  dress  was  plain  and  simple,  his  manners  modest  and  unaf 
fected,  and  his  style  of  living  as  generous  and  magnificent  as  was 
possible  in  a  somewhat  rudely  built  story-and-a-half  house  of  wood. 
Such  was  his  liberality  that  he  gave  up  his  English  estates  to  a 
younger  brother,  and  the  surplus  of  his  American  income  was 
distributed  with  a  lavish  hand  among  his  tenants  and  neighbors. 
His  principal  amusement  was  hunting,  and  after  the  close  of  a 
morning's  sport  he  was  wont  to  invite  all  his  companions  to  dinner. 
He  had  been  educated  in  revolutionary  principles,  and  had  received 
high  notions  of  republican  liberty.  He  was  the  principal  magistrate 
of  Frederick  county,  and  presided  at  the  provincial  courts  at  Win 
chester,  where,  during  the  sessions,  he  kept  an  open  table.* 

The  Honorable  William  Fairfax*)*  had  resided  several  years  in 
Virginia,  in  charge  of  his  cousin's  estates,  before  the  marriage  of  his 
daughter  with  Lawrence  Washington,  and  he  remained  there  until 
his  removal  to  New  England,  two  or  three  years  after  the  period 
here  referred  to.  His  eldest  son,  George  William  Fairfax,  now 
about  twenty-two  years  of  age,  had  been  educated  in  England,  and 
since  his  return  had  married  a  daughter  of  Colonel  Carey,  of 
Hampton,  on  James  river,  whom,  with  her  sister,  he  had  brought 
home  to  Belvoir. 

George  Washington  received  and  accepted  an  invitation  from 
the  old  lord  to  accompany  the  bridal  party  to  Greenway  Court,  and 
while  there  wrote  a  letter  to  one  of  his  youthful  confidants  from 
which  it  appears  that  he  still  suffered  from  the  melancholy  depres 
sion  induced  by  unrequited  or  hopeless  love.  "As  it  is  the  greatest 
mark  of  friendship  and  esteem,"  he  says,  u  which  absent  friends  can 
show  each  other,  to  write  and  often  communicate  their  thoughts,  I 

*  See  Lodge's  Peerage.      Burke's  ditto. 

t  William  Fairfax  was  born  in  England,  and  after  serving  in  the  army  in  the  East  and  West 
Indies  and  Spain  was  made  governor  of  New  Providence  and  chief  justice  of  the  Bahamas,  whence 
he  was  transferred  to  some  office  in  New  England.  He  was  living  here  when  his  kinsman  Lord 
Fairfax  persuaded  him  to  undertake  the  charge  of  his  estates  in  Virginia.  Here  he  became  distin 
guished  in  public  affairs,  and  was  for  several  years  a  member,  and  for  some  time  president,  of  the 
council  of  state.  He  returned  to  New  England, where  he  had  acquired  some  property,soon  after  the 
arrival  of  Lord  Fairfax  in  this  country,  and  died  there  in  1757,  leaving  two  sons,  of  whom  the 
younger,  the  Rev.  Bryan  Fairfax,  became  the  eighth  Lord  Fairfax.  His  descendant,  Thomas,  the 
tenth  Lord  Fairfax,  was  in  1855  residing  at  Woodburne  in  Maryland. 

4 


50  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1748. 

shall  endeavor  from  time  to  time,  and  at  all  times,  to  acquaint  yon 
with  my  situation  and  employments  in  life,  and  I  could  wish  you 
would  take  half  the  pains  to  send  me  a  letter  by  any  opportunity, 
as  you  may  be  wrell  assured  of  its  meeting  a  welcome  reception. 
My  place  of  residence  at  present  is  at  his  lordship's,  where  I  might, 
were  my  heart  disengaged,  pass  my  time  very  pleasantly,  as  there 
is  a  very  agreeable  young  lady  in  the  same  house,  Colonel  George 
Fairfax's  wife's  sister.  But  that  only  adds  fuel  to  the  fire,  as  being 
often  and  unavoidably  in  company  with  her  revives  my  passion  for 
your  lowland  beauty ;  whereas,  were  I  to  live  more  retired  from 
young  women,  I  might  in  some  measure  alleviate  my  sorrow  by 
burying  that  chaste  and  troublesome  passion  in  oblivion ;  and  I  am 
very  well  assured  that  this  will  be  the  only  antidote  or  remedy." 

It  was  the  hunting  season,  and  Lord  Fairfax  wras  an  accomplished 
and  bold  sportsman,  keenly  enjoying  the  chase  in  those  grand  old 
woods,  so  different  from  the  scenes  of  his  earlier  sporting  experi 
ences.  Through  half  cleared  fields,  or  tangled  copses,  or  among 
the  gigantic  trees  whose  foliage  gave  what  seemed  a  boundless 
shade  to  the  bear,  panther,  buffalo,  deer,  fox,  raccoon,  squirrel  or 
opossum,*  he  guided  his  horse  after  a  well  trained  pack  of  hounds,")' 
with  a  skill  and  daring  that  had  hitherto  been  rarely  known  on  this 
continent.  But  he  found  young  Washington  as  expert  and  fearless 
in  the  saddle  as  himself,  and  in  many  of  the  mysteries  of  American 
hunting  fitted  to  be  his  teacher.  The  valley  of  the  Shenandoah 


*  Beverley  gives  a  much  larger  list  of  animals  hunted  in  the  forests  of  Virginia.  "  Though  some 
of  their  names  may  seem  frightful  to  the  English,  who  hear  not  of  them  in  their  own  country,"  he 
remarks,  "they  are  not  so  here,  for  all  these  creatures  ever  fly  from  man." 

t  Lord  Fairfax  is  said  to  have  brought  to  Virginia  a  pack  of  foxhounds.  But  "hunting,  in  its 
true  acceptation,  with  trained  hounds  followed  in  view  by  mounted  hunters,"  says  Mr.  Herbert,  our 
best  authority  on  this  subject,  "can  hardly  be  said  to  exist  in  North  America.  Gentlemen  in  the 
south  keep  packs  of  hounds  for  the  pursuit  of  the  deer  and  the  bear,  and,  when  the  ground  is  prac 
ticable,  ride  to  them  well  and  daringly,  but  the  woody  nature  of  the  country,  and  the  unwillingness 
of  the  game  to  break  covert  and  take  to  the  open  field,  render  it  nearly  impossible  to  keep  near  the 
hounds  ;  the  principal  utility  of  which  is  to  drive  the  animal  across  the  stand  of  the  ambushed 
hunter." — Field  Sports,  ii.  146.  The  presence  of  better  game  has  from  the  first  nearly  prevented 
fox-hunting  in  this  country.  "  The  fox,"  remarks  Mr.  Herbert,  in  the  same  work,  "  is  pursued 
merely  for  the  sake  of  destroying  a  noxious  animal,  generally  on  foot,  with  a  few  heavy  southern 
hounds,  and  the  gun."  The  impression  therefore  that  Lord  Fairfax  was  a  hard  riding  fox  hunter 
in  Virginia,  and  that  Washington  was  his  companion  in  any  sport  of  this  description,  is  probably 
erroneous. 


^•r.  16.]  APPOINTED  A  SURVEYOR.  51 

was  famous  for  its  wild  turkeys,  which  Beverley  describes  as  "  of 
incredible  bigness,"  and  partridges,  pigeons,  and  other  species  of 
winged  game  abounded  there.  The  youth  was  familiar  with  all 
the  manoeuvering  and  finesse  most  in  vogue  among  the  Virginia 
hunters,  and  he  grew  rapidly  in  the  nobleman's  regard.  His  frank 
ness,  modesty,  and  unfailing  good  sense,  together  with  his  nice 
appreciation  of  social  proprieties,  and  native  undaunteclness  of 
spirit,  commanded  his  affection  as  well  as  his  confidence.  He  was 
already  acquainted  with  the  quality  of  his  education,  and  had 
perhaps  noticed  his  practice  with  the  theodolite  and  chain  about 
the  grounds  at  Mount  Yernon,  or  looked  over  his  field  books,  so 
remarkable  for  their  exactness  and  completeness ;  and  though 
knowing  him  to  be  scarcely  sixteen  years  of  age,  he  resolved  to 
procure  him  a  commission  as  a  public  surveyor,  giving  authority  to 
his  reports  and  enabling  him  to  have  them  recorded  in  the  county 
offices,  and  to  employ  him  in  the  division  and  measurement  of  his 
immense  wilderness  estate. 

It  was  thus  to  his  acquaintance  with  the  Fairfaix  family  that 
Washington  was,  in  the  outset  of  his  active  life,  chiefly  indebted  for 
the  opportunity  of  performing  those  acts  which  were  the  foundation 
of  his  subsequent  advancement  in  the  world. 


52  WASHINGTON:  A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1748. 


CHAPTER   V. 

•WASHINGTON'S  FIRST  SURVEYING  EXPEDITION — A  PREPARATION  FOR  HIS  FUTURE 

LIFE DIARY  OF  HIS  ADVENTURES SWOLLEN    RIVERS  AND  IMPASSABLE  ROADS 

UNCOMFORTABLE     LODGINGS VISITS    THE     BERKELEY    SPRINGS AN    INDIAN 

WAR  DANCE SUPPER  AT  THE  HOUSE  OF  A  FOREST  SQUIRE GERMAN  SETTLERS 

• — RETURNS  TO  MOUNT  VERNON CHARACTERISTIC  LETTER OTHER  EXPEDI 
TIONS MANNER  IN  WHICH  HIS  SURVEYS  WERE  EXECUTED PECULIAR  ADVAN 
TAGES  DERIVED  FROM  THEM  BY  HIM HIS  ACQUAINTANCE  WITH  THE  BACK 
WOODSMEN  AND  INDIANS ACCURACY  OF  HIS  TOPOGRAPHICAL  ESTIMATES. 

IT  would  be  difficult  to  conceive  of  an  experience  more  excel 
lently  adapted  to  prepare  Washington  for  the  high  destiny  which 
awaited  him  than  that  upon  which  he  now  entered.  The  lands 
possessed  by  Lord  Fairfax,  between  the  Potomac  and  Eappahannock 
rivers,  and  extending  back  beyond  the  Alleghany  mountains,  had 
never  been  surveyed.  Hitherto  the  population  of  Virginia  had 
been  principally  confined  to  the  narrow  region  east  of  the  Blue 
Ridge,  but  now  a  tide  was  setting  toward  the  west,  and  adventurous 
settlers  were  finding  their  way  up  the  streams  and  along  the  rich 
valleys,  and  occupying  the  most  fertile  and  attractive  places  without 
warrants  from  the  proprietors.  In  the  absence  of  any  system  of 
public  surveys,  such  as  now  prevails,  it  was  of  the  utmost  import 
ance  to  them  that  their  estates  should  be  methodically  divided  into 
lots  and  accurately  measured,  for  the  purpose  of  claiming  quit-rents 
and  giving  legal  titles.  The  duty  assigned  to  young  Washington 
became  to  him  one  of  the  sternest  but  most  beneficent  processes  of 
his  education.  In  the  period  which  he  devoted  to  it,  the  future 
leader  of  the  Virginia  forces  and  chief  of  the  continental  army 
could  not  have  been  more  suitably  disciplined  in  the  best  military 
school  in  Christendom.  "  I  know  not,"  says  Mr.  Everett,  "  if  it  would 
be  deemed  unbecoming,  were  a  thoughtful  student  of  our  history 


J£T.  16.]  SURVEYING  EXPERIENCES.  53 

to  say  that  he  could  almost  hear  the  voice  of  Providence,  in  the 
language  of  Milton,  announce  its  high  purpose : 

"  To  exercise  him  in  the  wilderness; 
There  he  shall  first  lay  down  the  rudiments 
Of  his  great  warfare,  ere  I  send  him  forth 
To  conquer !" 

Washington  set  out  from  Mount  Yernon  on  his  first  surveying 
expedition,  in  company  with  George  William  Fairfax,  Mrs.  Lawrence 
Washington's  elder  brother,  early  in  March,  1748,  just  after  he  had 
completed  his  sixteenth  year.  He  kept  a  journal  of  his  proceed 
ings  and  adventures,  which  is  still  preserved,  and  its  details,  though 
in  themselves  of  very  little  significance,  are  extremely  interest 
ing  as  a  portion  of  his  biography.  After  leaving  Greenway  Court, 
Lord  Fairfax's  lodge  in  the  valley  of  the  Shenandoah,  they  struck 
into  the  wilderness,  and  their  nights  were  passed  under  the  shelter 
of  trees  or  rocks  on  blankets  or  bear  skins,  with  feet  to  the  blazing 
fires  they  had  kindled,  or  in  tents  or  rude  cabins,  affording  but  an 
inadequate  protection  against  the  weather  of  that  inclement  season. 
The  retreating  winter  sent  down  floods  from  melting  snows  on  the 
mountains,  which,  with  frequent  rains,  rendered  the  streams  impas 
sable  at  the  usual  fords  except  by  swimming  the  horses,  and  the 
roads  and  paths  through  the  woods  were  in  their  worst  condition. 

On  the  thirteenth  of  March  they  passed  through  beautiful  groves 
of  sugar  maples,  and  "  spent  the  best  part  of  the  da}^  in  admiring 
the  trees  and  the  richness  of  the  land."  On  the  sixteenth  he  writes 
that  they  "  worked  hard  till  night,  and  then  returned"  to  the  house 
of  a  settler.  "After  supper  we  were  lighted  into  a  room,  and  I, 
not  being  so  good  a  woodsman  as  the  rest,  stripped  myself  very 
orderly,  and  went  into  the  bed,  as  they  called  it,  when  to  my  sur 
prise  I  found  it  to  be  nothing  but  a  little  straw  matted  together, 
without  a  sheet  or  any  thing  else  but  one  threadbare  blanket,  with 
double  its  weight  of  vermin.  I  was  glad  to  get  up,  and  put  on  my 
clothes,  and  lie  as  my  companions  did.  Had  we  not  been  very 
tired  I  am  sure  we  should  not  have  slept  much  that  night.  I  made 
a  promise  to  sleep  so  no  more,  choosing  rather  to  sleep  in  the  open 
air  before  a  fire."  Two  days  after,  finding  the  river,  in  consequence 


54  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1748. 

of  rains  that  had  fallen  among  the  Alleghanies,  so  high  as  not  to  be 
fordable,  they  made  an  excursion  to  see  the  warm  springs,  since 
called  the  Berkeley  Springs  at  Bath.  The  water  did  not  subside, 
and,  having  swum  their  horses  to  the  Maryland  side,  on  the  morn 
ing  of  the  twenty-first  the  surveyors  crossed  over  in  a  canoe,  and 
travelled  all  day,  "  about  forty  miles,"  he  says,  "  over  the  worst  road 
I  believe  that  ever  was  trod  by  man  or  beast."  They  stopped  at 
the  house  of  a  Colonel  Cresap,  where  they  were  detained  three  or 
four  days  by  bad  weather.  On  the  second  day  they  were  surprised 
by  the  appearance  of  more  than  thirty  Indians,  coming  from  a 
battle,  with  the  scalp  of  an  enemy.  Having  some  liquor,  they  gave 
the  savages  a  part  of  it,  which  put  them  in  the  humor  of  dancing, 
so  that  the  surveyors  had  the  spectacle  of  a  war  dance.  After 
clearing  away  a  large  space  and  building  a  fire  in  the  centre,  the 
warriors  seated  themselves  around  it,  and  their  principal  orator 
made  a  speech.  When  he  had  finished,  the  best  dancer  in  the 
company  started  up  as  if  from  sleep,  and  "  ran  and  jumped  about 
the  ring  in  a  most  comical  manner."  The  rest  followed.  After  the 
dancing  came  their  music.  One  of  them  drummed  on  a  deer  skin, 
stretched  over  a  pot  half  filled  with  water,  and  another  rattled  a 
few  shot  in  a  gourd  which  was  decorated  with  a  horse's  tail.  It 
must  have  been  a  picturesque  and  striking  sight  amid  those  lonely 
old  woods,  to  see  the  savages,  in  their  wild  costume,  dancing,  in  the 
strong  fire-light  to  the  discordant  music  of  their  war  songs.  To 
Washington  it  was  a  novelty,  and  the  particularity  with  which  it  is 
described  in  his  diary  shows  that  he  was  deeply  interested  by  it. 

From  Cresap's  the  party  proceeded  to  the  mouth  of  Patterson's 
creek,  where  they  recrossed  the  Potomac  in  a  canoe,  swimming 
their  horses  as  before  ;  and  the  next  day,  after  travelling  a  consider 
able  distance,  supped  at  the  house  of  Solomon  Hedges,  Esquire,  one 
of  his  majesty's  justices  of  the  peace  for  the  county  of  Frederick, 
whose  style  of  living  is  illustrated  by  the  fact  that  there  was  neither 
a  knife  nor  a  fork  on  the  table  except  those  brought  in  the  pockets 
of  the  guests.  The  night  of  the  second  of  April  was  rainy,  and 
the  straw  on  which  Washington  was  sleeping  caught  fire ;  "  but  I 


< r.r      I    have  never  had 
i:;    them,  except  the  lew 

d  in  the  business  of  survejing  about  three 
no  interruptions  except  during  the  severe  weather 
Tie  was  exposed  while  in  the  field  to  continual 
ons,  and    dangers,  and   was  without  any  of  the 
arie5  of  civilized  lite,  but  he  endured  every  thing' 


tew  au-- 
colony, 
y  they 
rerarioe, 
ri  very 


.  g«j  hln     ait  rhe   purchase  of 

t;xtv  became  -the  /reductive  portions 

oh  he  executed  his  du; 
tor  \  x,  wiio 

*an  '  our« 

;-*;.i 
;  •    Ml 

-A   of.  the 

Ivit.*  fr'Hjuently 

!^wr  ;  »t*  and  integrity 

;i.K       ':•»'     *M  -       ^r  •  ,;ies 


courts. 


58  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY".  [1751. 

the  character  and  temper  of  the  Indians,  whose  predatory  or  venge 
ful  incursions  upon  the  settlements  had  at  one  time  or  another 
brought  mourning  into  almost  every  household,  and  whose  uncer 
tain  dispositions  made  them  a  continual  terror  not  only  to  women 
and  children  but  to  the  most  bold  spirited  and  sagacious  invaders  of 
the  forests.  He  saw  them  stealthily  following  the  wild  game  on  the 
mountains,  and  in  their  wigwams,  about  their  council  fires,  or  cele 
brating  their  prowess  in  fraternal  wars ;  and  was  so  careful  and  wise 
an  observer  of  their  peculiarities  that  during  his  subsequent  military 
and  civil  administrations  few  were  as  good  judges  as  to  the  best 
modes  of  dealing  with  them. 

There  are  not  many  things  more  important  or  essential  to  the 
great  commander  than  a  proper  education  of  the  eye.  The  quick 
glance  which  accurately  measures  distances,  numbers,  or  elevations, 
as  it  ranges  across  the  battle  field  through  clouds  of  smoke  and 
bristling  rows  of  bayonets,  is  in  most  cases  a  result  of  long  expe 
rience  in  the  conduct^  arrangement  and  disposition  of  armies. 
Washington's  observation  as  a  surveyor  enabled  him  to  estimate 
with  astonishing  rapidity  and  certainty  the  features  and  capacities 
of  fields  as  large  as  his  vision  comprehended,  so  that  he  could  direct 
the  movements  of  forces  in  such  a  manner  as  to  be  assured  of  every 
advantage  within  his  reach  that  depended  on  the  favorable  acci 
dents  of  nature. 

On  the  whole  it  would  be  difficult  to  conceive  of  any  manner  in 
which  Washington  might  have  passed  this  portion  of  his  life  more 
advantageously,  either  with  reference  to  his  private  interest  or  his 
preparation  for  the  great  work  before  him. 


JEt.  19.]  ENGLAND  AND  FRANCE.  5U 


CHAPTER   VI. 

THE  ENGLISH  AND  FRENCH  DOMINIONS  IN  AMERICA TREATY  OF  AIX  LA  CHAPELLE 

SURVIVING    CONTROVERSIES    RESPECTING  BOUNDARIES  ON  THIS  CONTINENT 

THE  OHIO  COMPANY PROSPECTS  OF  WAR WASHINGTON  APPOINTED  ADJUTANT 

GENERAL ENTERS     UPON     A     MILITARY    LIFE HIS    BROTHER    LAWRENCE    HAS 

CONSUMPTION HE    ACCOMPANIES     HIM     TO    THE    WEST     INDIES IS     ATTACKED 

WITH    THE    SMALL    POX RETURNS   TO  VIRGINIA DEATH  OF  LAWRENCE  WASH 
INGTON GEORGE  WASHINGTON  HIS  EXECUTOR  AND  LEGATEE. 

BEFORE  the  seven  years'  war,  which  has  with  propriety  been 
regarded  as  the  school  of  the  revolution,  this  continent  had  been 
the  scene  of  numerous  sanguinary  conflicts  between  the  English 
and  the  French.  The  former  possessed  the  sea  coast  from  Nova 
Scotia  to  Florida,  and  claimed  dominion  westward  to  the  Pacific, 
but  the  latter  had  established  themselves  in  the  interior  from  the 
St.  Lawrence  to  the  Mississippi.  The  treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle, 
signed  on  the  seventh  of  October,  1748,  was  framed  by  the  wisest 
statesmen  of  Europe,  and  was  expected  to  give  peace  to  the  world, 
but  it  left  the  controversy  between  these  two  nations  respecting 
their  American  boundaries  entirely  unsettled.  Neither  party  ad 
mitted  the  right  of  the  other  to  the  valley  of  the  Penobscot  or  to 
that  of  the  Ohio.  In  regard  to  the  English  colonies  here  the  treaty 
embraced  only  the  humiliating  stipulation  that  Louisburg,  conquered 
by  their  own  treasure  and  blood  in  1745,  should  be  given  up  to 
France  in  return  for  territorial  restitutions  of  which  only  the  queen 
of  Hungary  and  the  States  General  of  Holland  reaped  advantages. 
The  attachment  of  the  people  for  the  mother  country  was  lessened, 
but  they  were  soon  compelled  in  self  defence  to  prepare  for  a  renewal 
of  the  war  against  the  French.  In  settling  America  the  European 
nations  admitted  no  right  to  the  soil  on  the  part  of  the  aborigines, 
but  though  this  unfortunate  race  was  incapable  of  maintaining  its 


GO  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1751. 

independence,  it  had  ample  energies  for  carrying  on  harassing 
and  destructive  incursions  into  the  settlements  of  the  two  rival 
states,  and  it  was  alternately  stimulated  by  these  parties  against 
each  other,  and  much  more  commonly  and  effectively  by  the 
French  against  the  English  than  by  the  English  against  the  French. 
Every  quarrel  in  Europe  between  England  and  France  brought  the 
war  whoop  and  scalping  knife  to  the  frontiers,  all  the  way  from  the 
St.  Croix  to  the  Savannah. 

In  western  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  in  Kentucky,  and  all  the 
region  south  of  it,  and  in  that  northwest  of  the  Ohio  and  west  of 
the  Mississippi,  there  was  not  a  single  Anglo  Saxon  inhabitant.  In 
the  early  part  of  the  century  portions  of  the  Delaware,  Shawnee 
and  Mingo  tribes  of  Indians  had  migrated  from  Canada  and  taken 
up  their  abodes  about  the  Ohio  and  its  tributaries,  and  the  French 
pretended  to  hold  them  under  their  protection ;  but  their  doubtful 
allegiance  to  the  governor  of  Canada  had  in  recent  years  been 
undermined  by  an  influx  of  fur  traders  from  Pennsylvania.  Many 
of  these  hardy  and  rude  adventurers  became  rich  with  the  spoils  of 
their  commerce,  in  which  worthless  trinkets,  gaudy  colored  fabrics 
for  dress,  powder,  shot,  and  rum,  were  exchanged  at  enormous 
profits  for  valuable  furs  and  peltries.  Some  of  the  more  enter 
prising  and  intelligent  gentlemen  of  Virginia  and  Maryland  were 
anxious  to  share  in  these  extraordinary  advantages,  and  soon  after 
the  treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle,  declaring  peace  between  England 
and  France,  obtained  a  charter  for  an  association  styled  the  Ohio 
Company,  the  avowed  object  of  which  was  the  occupation  and 
settlement  of  the  fertile  region  southwest  of  the  Ohio  river  and 
west  of  the  Alleghany  mountains.  It  consisted  of  a  small  number 
of  Virginians  and  Marylanders,  among  whom  were  Augustine  and 
Lawrence  Washington,  and  Mr.  Thomas  Hanbury,  an  eminent 
merchant  of  London.  The  company  were  bound  by  the  terms  of 
a  grant  of  six  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land,  to  introduce  one 
hundred  families  into  this  district  within  seven  years,  and  to  build  a 
fort  and  provide  a  garrison  adequate  to  its  defence. 

Preparations  for  the  execution  of  the  conditions  of  this  grant, 


jET.  19.]  APPOINTED  ADJUTANT  GENERAL.  61 

and  for  opening  a  trade  with  the  Indians,  arrested  the  attention  of 
the  French  authorities ;  emissaries  were  sent  from  Canada  to  break 
up  the  friendly  relations  which  had  been  entered  into  between  the 
agents  of  the  company  and  the  Indian  tribes ;  and  during  the  last 
winter  in  which  Washington  had  been  engaged  in  surveying,  it 
became  evident  that  Virginia  was  to  be  exposed  to  the  horrors  of  a 
border  and  savage  war.  As  a  precautionary  measure  the  colony 
was  divided  into  four  military  districts,  in  each  of  which  an  officer 
was  appointed  called  an  adjutant  general,  with  the  rank  of  major, 
and  a  salary  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  pounds  a  year,  whose  duty  it 
was  to  assemble  and  exercise  the  militia,  inspect  their  arms  and 
equipments,  and  enforce  generally  the  established  regulations  for 
discipline. 

It  is  probable  that  Washington  during  his  career  as  a  surveyor 
had  become  acquainted  with  many  gentlemen  of  standing  and  in 
fluence  in  the  colony,  and  it  is  a  proof  of  the  high  degree  of  respect 
and  confidence  he  had  inspired  that  he  received  a  commission  to 
take  charge  of  one  of  these  districts,  though  at  the  time  but  nine 
teen  years  of  age.  It  is  true  that  his  brother  Lawrence  was  at  this 
period  a  member  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  and  that  his  friend  Mr. 
William  Fairfax  had  a  seat  in  the  governor's  council,  but  only  a 
diffused  and  well  established  reputation  for  extraordinary  talents, 
accomplishments,  and  virtues,  could  have  been  sufficient  to  procure 
under  these  circumstances  of  public  danger  the  appointment  of  so 
youthful  a  person  to  an  office  thus  intimately  connected  with  the 
preservation  of  the  lives  and  fortunes  of  the  people. 

The  martial  propensities  which  he  displayed  in  boyhood  had 
rather  increased  than  diminished  with  his  years,  and  a  knowledge 
of  these  on  the  part  of  the  governor  and  council  had  probably 
some  effect  in  procuring  for  him  this  distinguished  position.  There 
were  in  Virginia  many  officers  besides  Lawrence  Washington  who 
had  served  in  the  French  or  Spanish  wars,  and  some  of  them 
must  have  been  accomplished  soldiers,  familiar  with  military 
science  as  well  as  with  the  practical  use  of  arms.  In  applying 
himself  with  characteristic  earnestness  to  the  study  of  his  new 


62  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1751. 

duties  he  was  therefore  not  without  some  considerable  advantages, 
Jacob  Van  Braain  renewed  his  instructions  in  fence,  and  Adjutant 
Muse  practised  with  him  the  manual  exercise,  described  evolutions  in 
the  field,  and  loaned  him  books  on  the  military  art.  The  Fairfaxes 
and  his  brother,  with  their  well  informed  and  critical  conversations 
on  such  subjects,  must  have  been  nearly  as  serviceable  as  professed 
teachers  of  tactics  and  strategy. 

He  had  scarcely  entered  on  the  active  discharge  of  the  duties  of 
his  office  when  fraternal  affection  led  him  to  undertake  others  of  a 
very  different  nature.  His  brother  Lawrence,  who  had  been  to 
him  the  wisest  and  faithfulest  of  friends,  and  whose  house  had  been 
his  home  from  the  time  of  his  leaving  school,  was  now  in  so  critical 
a  condition  of  health  that  it  was  deemed  necessary  by  his  physicians 
that  he  should  be  removed  to  a  more  genial  climate  for  the  ap 
proaching  winter.  His  constitution  had  always  been  delicate,  his 
physical  energies  had  gradually  been  declining  ever  since  his  return 
from  the  campaign  against  Carthagena,  and  at  length  it  was  ap 
parent  that  he  was  rapidly  failing  from  consumption.  He  visited 
England,  hoping  the  voyage  would  be  of  some  advantage,  but  was 
disappointed;  he  also  passed  a  summer  at  the  Berkeley  Springs, 
then  surrounded  by  a  wilderness,  but  still  found  no  essential  relief; 
and  at  last  it  was  resolved,  upon  consultation  with  his  medical  advisers, 
that  he  should  try  the  air  of  the  West  Indies.  Accompanied  by  his 
younger  brother  he  accordingly  sailed  for  Barbadoes  on  the  twenty- 
eighth  of  September,  1751,  and  arrived  at  that  island  on  the  third  of 
the  following  November.  George  Washington,  as  was  his  habit,  kept 
a  journal  of  every  day's  events  and  what  he  saw  or  heard.  On  the 
ship  he  copied  the  logbook,  and  added  his  own  remarks  on  the 
weather  and  on  nautical  occurrences,  and  after  reaching  their 
destination,  described  the  appearance  and  resources  of  the  place,  the 
social  and  political  condition  of  its  inhabitants,  and  the  movements 
of  his  brother  and  himself  while  they  remained  there. 

The  change  of  scene,  pleasantness  of  the  climate,  cordial  hospi 
tality  of  the  people,  and  his  brother's  watchful  attentions,  revived 
the  invalid's  spirits,  and  for  a  while  renewed  his  strength,  so  that 


JET.  19.]  LAWRENCE  WASHINGTON.  63 

the  resident  physician  whom  he  consulted  encouraged  a  belief  that 
lie  would  be  restored  to  health.  They  took  lodgings  at  an  agreeably 
situated  house  about  a  mile  from  the  town,  owned  by  the  com 
mander  of  the  fort,  and  were  invited  to  dinners  by  a  club  of  gentle 
men,  and  by  the  principal  civil  and  military  dignitaries,  and  were 
taken  to  the  theatre,  where  George  Washington  for  the  first  time 
saw  a  play  acted.  It  was  the  tragedy  of  George  Barnwell,  and  he 
mentions  in  his  diary  that  "  the  character  of  Barnwell,  and  several 
others,  were  said  to  be  well  performed." 

He  had  not  been  more  than  a  fortnight  on  the  island  when  he 
became  ill  with  the  small  pox.  The  attack  was  severe,  but  by 
skilful  medical  treatment,  and  the  kind  attentions  of  friends,  he  was 
cured  in  about  three  weeks.  Some  traces  of  the  disease  are  said  to 
have  remained  upon  his  countenance  for  the  rest  of  his  days.  He 
thus  happily,  at  so  early  an  age,  and  in  the  favorable  climate  of  the 
tropics,  passed  through  this  terrible  ordeal,  and  before  his  military 
career  began,  was  placed  beyond  the  reach  of  a  malady  which,  in 
one  of  his  letters  written  to  the  governor  of  Virginia  in  1777,  he 
refers  to  as  more  dreaded  and  often  more  destructive  than  the 
enemy's  sword. 

Believing  that  his  health  was  benefited  by  the  climate,  Lawrence 
Washington  determined  to  remain  for  a  considerable  period  under 
its  healing  and  invigorating  influence,  and  instead  of  returning 
home  in  the  spring,  to  pass  the  ensuing  summer  in  Bermuda. 
Eegretting  the  absence  of  his  wife,  it  was  arranged  that  his  brother 
should  return  to  Virginia  and  bring  her  out  to  meet  him  at  that 
island.  Accordingly  on  the  twenty-second  of  December  he  sailed 
for  the  Chesapeake,  and,  after  a  very  stormy  passage,  of  five  weeks, 
reached  Mount  Vernon. 

Lawrence  Washington  lingered  through  the  winter  at  Barbadoes, 
but  the  invariable  beauty  and  mildness  of  the  climate  wearied  him. 
"No  place  can  please  me,"  he  wrote,  " without  a  change  of  seasons." 
In  the  beginning  of  March  he  proceeded  to  Bermuda,  but  the 
sharp  damp  winds  of  the  early  spring  aggravated  his  disease  and 
induced  depression  of  spirits.  Some  temporary  relief  caused  him  to 


64  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1752. 

send  home  an  encouraging  account  of  his  condition,  and  to  urge  the 
speedy  departure  of  his  wife  and  brother  to  join  him  there,  but 
another  letter  subdued  the  hopes  which  this  awakened,  and  pre 
vented  them  from  leaving  Virginia.  He  feared,  now,  that  no  essen 
tial  improvement  would  result  from  a  continuance  abroad ;  soon 
after,  was  uncertain  whether  to  go  back  to  Barbadoes  or  to  visit  the 
south  of  France ;  and  next,  in  a  moment  of  despondency,  was  on 
the  eve  of  "hurrying  home  to  his  grave."  His  melancholy  fore 
bodings  were  soon  realized.  He  arrived  at  Mount  Vernon  in  time 
to  die,  surrounded  by  his  kindred  and  friends,  under  his  own  roof, 
on  the  twenty-sixth  of  July,  1752.  "Few  men,"  says  Mr.  Sparks, 
"  have  been  more  beloved  for  their  amiable  qualities,  or  more  ad 
mired  for  those  higher  traits  of  character  which  give  dignity  to 
virtue  and  a  charm  to  accomplishments  of  mind  and  manners." 

He  was  thirty  years  of  age,  and  left  an  only  child,  a  daughter  to 
inherit  his  large  estates,  of  which  the  use  and  income  were  secured 
to  his  widow  during  her  life.  In  case  of  the  daughter's  death 
without  issue  it  was  provided  that  Mount  Vernon  and  other  prop 
erty  specified  in  the  will  should  descend  to  his  brother  George,  who 
was  appointed  one  of  his  executors.  Of  these  he  was  the  youngest, 
yet  his  familiarity  with  his  brother's  affairs,  and  his  discretion  and 
integrity,  were  so  well  understood,  that  the  business  was  placed 
almost  entirely  in  his  hands.  For  several  months  therefore  his 
attention  was  largely  occupied  with  private  employments,  but  even 
in  this  period  he  was  not  forgetful  of  his  duties  as  adjutant  general. 
As  soon  as  circumstances  permitted  he  visited  the  several  counties 
in  his  district,  to  instruct  the  militia  officers,  review  the  companies 
and  battalions,  and  by  all  the  means  in  his  power  to  prepare  the 
country  for  vigorous  military  operations. 


20.]  THE  FRENCH  DOMINION.  65 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE    FRENCH     DOMINION     IN    AMERICA DESIGNS    OF     THE    FRENCH    AGAINST    THE 

ENGLISH     COLONIES FRENCH     AND     ENGLISH     TERRITORIAL      CLAIMS INDIAN 

VIEW    OF    THEM DISTINCTIONS    OF    THE     FRENCH    AND    ENGLISH     POLICY RE 
MARKABLE    PROPHECY  BY  PETER  KALM INCREDULITY  OF  CARDILLAC A  NEW 

ERA PREDICTION  OF  JOHN  ADAMS THE  SCHOOL  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

AT  this  period  the  fortunes  of  France  on  this  continent  wore 
their  brightest  aspect.  Along  the  line  of  the  lakes,  and  down  the 
Mississippi  river,  French  politics,  with  the  Roman  religion,  had  com 
passed,  through  the  daring  efforts  of  traders,  seconded  by  ambitious 
members  of  the  society  of  Jesus,  results  eminently  dangerous  to 
British  power.  The  Englishman  made  his  way  slowly  and  with 
difficulty  to  the  affection  and  the  alliance  of  the  savages,  but  the 
Frenchman  seemed  almost  without  an  exertion  to  secure  their 
friendship.  A  cordon  of  French  posts  was  extending  slowly  but 
persistently  from  Lake  Erie  to  New  Orleans,  already  a  town  of 
considerable  importance,  and  it  was  apparent  to  sagacious  statesmen 
that  the  far-reaching  policy  of  France,  which  contemplated  the 
gradual  extinction  of  British  authority  in  America,  would  be  success 
ful  unless  met  with  a  degree  of  energy  on  the  part  of  the  English 
which  they  had  hitherto  failed  to  display  in  this  controversy. 

Favored  by  their  maritime  superiority  the  English  had  possessed 
themselves  of  the  Atlantic  coast,  but  the  charters  granted  to  some  of 
their  earlier  adventurers  extended  across  the  continent.  The  French 
pretensions,  however,  would  have  limited  their  settlements  to  the  nar 
row  region  east  of  the  Alleghanies.  The  Marquis  de  la  Gallisoniere, 
while  governor  of  Canada,  had  pointed  to  Detroit  as  the  centre  of  a 
boundless  inland  commerce,  and  to  Louisiana  and  Canada,  almost 
connected  by  the  navigable  waters  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and  the 

5 


66  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY".  [1752. 

Mississippi,  bordered  by  some  of  the  richest  lands  in  the  world,  as 
the  bulwarks  of  France  in  America  against  English  ambition. 

The  claims  of  the  rival  nations  to  authority  over  the  disputed 
territories  were  alike  unfounded.  Great  Britain  asserted  her  rights 
to  all  the  country  w^est  of  her  dominions  on  the  seaboard,  as  natu 
rally  appertaining  to  them,  and  to  that  between  the  mountains  and 
the  Mississippi,  by  an  additional  title  derived  from  the  Indians. 
By  careful  and  liberal  management  an  amicable  relation  had  been 
preserved  with  the  powerful  confederacy  of  the  Iroquois,  inhabiting 
the  eastern  and  southern  borders  of  Lake  Ontario.  The  chiefs  of 
these  tribes,  in  1744,  had  met  at  Lancaster  commissioners  from 
Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia,  and  had  ceded  to  them  the 
lands  in  question,  for  four  hundred  pounds,  alleging  that  they  had 
been  conquered  by  their  forefathers.  But  the  Indians  by  whom 
they  were  occupied,  and  wrhose  ancestors  had  dwelt  upon  them 
from  time  immemorial,  derided  this  proceeding,  declaring  that  they 
themselves  were  the  only  rightful  owners  of  the  soil,  and  that  the 
Six  Nations  had  nothing  to  do  with  it  in  any  manner  whatever. 

The  French  rested  their  claim  mainly  on  the  right  of  discovery, 
but  fortified  it  by  the  sanction  of  treaties  at  Ryswick,  Utrecht,  and 
Aix  la  Chapelle.  Marquette,  Joliet,  and  La  Salle,  had  descended 
the  Mississippi,  and  settlements  had  been  made  by  other  subjects 
of  the  crown  of  France,  southward  of  Lake  Michigan  and  on  the 
Illinois  river,  before  any  Englishman  had  crossed  the  Alleghanies. 
It  was  held  to  be  an  axiom  in  the  law  of  nations  that  the  discovery 
of  a  river  gave  to  the  sovereign  of  the  discoverer  a  right  to  all  the 
lands  drained  by  it  or  by  its  tributaries,  and  in  the  treaties  referred 
to  the  title  of  France  had  been  recognized  to  all  her  actual  posses 
sions  in  America. 

The  jealousy  of  the  Indians  was  naturally  excited  by  a  knowledge 
of  these  debates,  and  a  deputy  of  the  Delaware  chiefs  exposed 
their  absurdity  by  the  natural  and  pertinent  inquiry,  addressed  to 
Mr.  Gist,  while  that  bold  pioneer  was  examining  the  valley  of  the 
Ohio,  in  1752,  "Where  lie  the  lands  of  the  Indians?  The  French 
claim  all  on  one  side  of  the  river,  and  the  English  all  on  the  other  ?" 


jET.  20.]  A  PROPHECY  OF  INDEPENDENCE.  67 

Although  the  white  population  of  the  English  colonies  wa.s 
supposed  to  amount  to  more  than  one  million,  and  that  of  the 
French  was  not  estimated  to  exceed  fifty  or  sixty  thousand,  the 
latter  had  still  great  advantages,  independent  of  any  support  from 
the  mother  country,  which  it  was  believed  would  justify  an  appeal 
to  arms  for  the  settlement  of  their  territorial  jurisdiction. 

The  English  colonists  were  peaceable  farmers  and  traders,  slowly 
extending  their  settlements  by  diligent  and  continuous  cultivation, 
and,  except  in  New  England,  little  used  to  the  excitements  of  a 
military  life.  They  were  divided  into  separate  commonwealths, 
differing  in  religion  and  political  constitutions,  jealous  of  each  other, 
and  united  only  by  a  common  distrust  of  the  temper  and  designs 
of  the  parent  state.  The  suspicion  had  long  been  entertained  that 
Great  Britain  was  restrained  from  the  maintenance  of  her  colonial 
rights  against  the  French  by  apprehensions  of  American  independ 
ence.  Peter  Kalm,  an  accomplished  and  sensible  Swedish  traveller, 
who  came  to  this  country  in  1748  and  remained  here  two  years, 
was  well  acquainted  with  Franklin  and  other  persons  eminent  in 
society  and  in  public  affairs,  and  he  says,  "There  is  reason  to 
believe  that  the  king  never  was  in  earnest  in  his  attempts  to  drive 
the  French  from  their  possessions,  though  it  might  have  been  done 
with  little  difficulty,  for  the  English  colonies  in  this  part  of  the 
world  have  increased  so  much  in  the  number  of  their  inhabitants, 

and  in  their  riches,  that  they  almost  vie  with  England  herself. 

I  have  been  told  by  English  subjects,  and  not  only  by  such  as  were 
natives  of  America,  but  even  by  those  who  had  emigrated  from 
Europe,  that  the  English  colonies,  within  the  space  of  thirty  or  fifty 
years  hence,  would  be  able  to  form  a  state  by  themselves,  entirely 
independent  of  England ;  but  as  the  whole  country  which  lies  along 
the  sea  shore  is  unguarded,  while  on  the  inland  side  it  is  harassed 
by  the  French  in  time  of  war,  these  dangerous  neighbors  are 
sufficient  to  prevent  the  connection  of  the  colonies  with  the  mother 
country  from  being  quite  broken  off  The  English  government  has, 
therefore,  abundant  reason  to  consider  the  French  in  America  as 
the  best  guardians  of  the  submission  of  its  own  plantations."  The 


68  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1752. 

policy  here  suggested  was  perhaps  disturbed  only  by  a  suspicion 
that  unless  the  French  were  driven  from  the  continent,  they  would 
not  only  retard  the  advancement  of  the  English,  but  expel  them 
from  the  region  they  had  already  subdued. 

Earlier  to  see,  more  comprehensive  in  designs,  superior  in  activity, 
and  governed  by  a  larger  ambition  and  more  generous  views, 
France  was  already  far  advanced  in  the  race  when  England  had  not 
yet  become  aware  of  its  object  and  importance.  More  daring, 
capable  and  facile  men  were  ranged  under  her  banners.  Her  chief 
purposes  were  mercenary,  but  for  their  attainment  the  cross  and 
the  sword  were  equally  under  her  direction.  Personal  gallantry  in 
the  most  eminent  degree  characterized  her  commercial  as  well  as 
her  military  adventurers,  and  Jesuit  missionaries  dreamed  that 
under  the  banner  of  France  was  to  be  fought  the  battle  which 
should  give  to  their  church  and  to  their  order  dominion  over  the 
continent.  These  three  classes  of  men,  in  commercial,  military 
and  priestly  life,  had  long  been  actively  interested  for  the  progress 
of  France  in  America,  and  their  efforts,  both  here  and  at  home,  had 
been  appreciated  by  a  monarch  who  had  inherited  the  empire  and 
the  views  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth.  Cardillac,  governor  of  Louisi 
ana,  was  one  of  the  few  Frenchmen  in  dignified  positions  who  did 
not  foresee  the  wealth  and  greatness  of  the  country.  Writing  to  the 
minister  at  home,  respecting  certain  instructions  issued  to  his  agents 
by  the  Sieur  Crozat,  he  exclaims,  "  What !  is  it  expected  that  for 
any  commercial  or  profitable  alms  boats  will  ever  be  able  to  run  up 
the  Mississippi  into  the  Ohio,  Missouri,  or  Red  river  ?  one  might  as 
well  try  to  bite  a  slice  off  the  moon !"  Others  anticipated  some 
thing  of  the  power  and  magnificence  which  in  these  regions  has 
crowned  the  industry  of  civilized  men  after  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years.  The  least  efficient  of  the  three  classes  I  have  mentioned 
were  the  priests.  They  were  generally  but  appendages  to  trading 
houses,  and  were  far  more  serviceable  to  the  traders  than  to  the 
church.  In  Europe  it  answered  very  well  to  appeal  to  the  religious 
sentiment  in  behalf  of  a  munificent  policy  toward  the  French  colonies. 
The  conversions  made  here  by  the  Jesuits  were,  however,  few  and 


Mr.  20.]  THE  CRISIS  OF  AFFAIRS.  69 

but  nominal.  Father  Marest  describes  their  converts,  in  1712,  as 
"  lazy,  treacherous,  fickle,  inconstant,  deceitful,  and  thievish,  so  as 
even  to  glory  in  their  address  in  stealing ;  brutal,  without  honor, 
without  truth,  ready  to  promise  any  thing  for  those  who  are  liberal 
to  them,  but  at  the  same  time  ungrateful,  and  without  thankfulness." 
Father  Charlevoix,  descending  the  Mississippi  in  1722,  though  con 
stantly  encountering  commercial  adventurers,  discovered  but  one 
cross  between  the  Illinois  river  and  New  Orleans,  and  that  was  at  a 
trading  post.  Of  the  people  at  one  of  the  stations  he  says,  "  They 
have  no  priests,  but  it  is  not  their  fault :  they  had  one,  whom  they 
were  obliged  to  get  rid  of,  because  he  was  drunken."*  Traders  and 
priests  were  alike  accustomed  to  implicit  obedience  to  despotic 
power,  and  were  easily  moulded  into  armies  when  needed  as  instru 
ments  of  war  or  conquest.  Their  minds  had  never  been  disturbed 
by  visions  of  liberty,  and  their  only  ambition,  except  that  of  per 
sonal  gain,  was  to  be  witnesses  of  the  aggrandizement  and  glory  of 
France.  The  French  governors,  at  least  those  of  Canada,  were 
nearly  all  soldiers  of  high  reputation,  and  were  intrusted  with  the 
absolute  regulation  and  superintendence  of  Indian  affairs,  and,  with 
the  exception  of  the  Iroquois,  or  Six  Nations,  and  their  tributaries, 
they  had  been  easily  successful  in  conciliating  and  gaining  the  adher 
ence  of  all  the  tribes  with  whom  they  had  been  brought  in  contact. 

Unity  of  design  and  promptness  of  execution  characterized  in 
all  its  departments  the  French  administration  in  America,  while  the 
councils  of  the  various  English  colonies  were  distracted  by  a  hun 
dred  local  causes,  and  by  pervading  doubts  respecting  the  temper 
of  parliament  and  the  policy  of  ministers,  which  had  thus  far  been 
as  selfish  and  hostile  to  their  true  interests  as  if  they  had  been 
conquered  provinces. 

A  new  era  approached,  and  to  the  contemplative  intelligence 
there  are  few  if  any  others  in  American  history  which  furnish  more 
incitements  to  reflection.  The  destinies  of  the  continent  hung  in 

*  "At  the  present  day,"  remarks  a  well  informed  writer  in  the  Presbyterian  Review,  "there  is 
but  one  band  of  Indians  in  the  northwest  who  are  really  civilized,  and  these  received  the  rudiments 
of  education  from  Jonathan  Edwards.  Those  who  were  accustomed  to  the  teachings  of  the  Jesuits, 
with  few  exceptions,  remain  as  lustful,  warlike,  and  indolent,  as  their  forefathers." 


70  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1752. 

poise,  and  within  a  few  years  clustered  deeds  that  lightened  the 
weight  of  France  in  the  scale,  and  caused  the  beam,  heavy  with  the 
greatness  of  an  empire,  to  gravitate  to  England.  In  this  period 
young  John  Adams,  then  the  teacher  of  a  village  school,  wrote  to  a 
friend,  "  If  we  can  remove  the  turbulent  Frenchmen,  our  people, 
according  to  the  exactest  calculations,  will,  in  another  century, 
become  more  numerous  than  the  population  of  England  herself. 
All  Europe  will  not  be  able  to  subdue  us.  The  only  wray  to  keep 
us  from  setting  up  for  ourselves  is  to  disunite  us."*  It  was  a  cause 
of  surprise  with  many  that  while  the  Six  Nations  of  savages  had 
no  difficulty  in  preserving  their  powerful  confederation,  the  English 
colonies  could  not  be  even  combined  for  their  common  defence.  But 
events  were  rapidly  occurring  which  gave  life  to  the  plans  of  union 
first  proposed  from  Philadelphia  in  1751,  and  more  distinctly  an 
nounced  at  Albany,  by  Franklin,  in  1754,  The  colonies  were  at 
length  to  act  in  concert,  and  with  unlocked  for  efficiency.  The 
"  turbulent  Frenchmen"  were  to  be  removed,  the  field  cleared  for  a 
larger  action,  and  the  people  trained  for  that  astonishing  contest 
which  thirty  years  later  was  to  inaugurate  the  most  truly  glorious 
period  in  human  history. 

*  October  12,  1755.     Life  and  Works  of  John  Adams,  i.  23, 


.  20.]  EXPEDITIONS  OF  GIST  AND  CROGHAN.  71 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

\ 

MOVEMENTS     OF    THE    OHIO     COMPANY EXPLORATIONS    BY    CHRISTOPHER    GIST 

TREATY    BETWEEN  VIRGINIA  AND    THE    MIAMIS MOVEMENTS  OF   THE   FRENCH 

INTERVIEW    BETWEEN  TANACHARISSON    AND  THE  FRENCH  COMMANDER  ON    LAKE 

ERIE HOSTILITIES    COMMENCED    BY  M.  DUQUESNE ROBERT    DINWIDDIE    MADE 

GOVERNOR HIS  OFFICIAL  CONDUCT MISSION  OF  CAPTAIN  TRENT WASHING 
TON  APPOINTED  TO  VISIT  THE  FRENCH  POSTS VAN  BRA  AM  HIS  INTERPRETER 

AND    GIST    HIS    GUIDE OBSERVATIONS  AT  THE    CONFLUENCE  OF  THE   MONONGA- 

HELA  AND  ALLEGHANY  RIVERS DETENTION  AT  LOGSTOWN INDIAN  COUN 
CILS ESCORT  OF  CHIEFS ARRIVAL  AT  VENANGO CAPTAIN  JONCAIRE REV 
ELRY  AT  HIS  QUARTERS SCANDAL DIPLOMACY END  OF  THE  JOURNEY. 

THE  Ohio  Company  had  proceeded  with  earnestness  to  fulfill  the 
conditions  of  their  grant  from  the  crown.  In  1750  they  entered 
into  an  arrangement  with  Christopher  Gist,  an  experienced  woods 
man  and  Indian  trader,  living  on  the  Yadkin,  near  the  borders  of 
North  Carolina,  to  make  a  careful  exploration  of  the  lands  which 
they  had  acquired,  to  ascertain  the  best  route  to  them,  to  observe 
the  strength  of  the  Indian  nations,  and  to  conciliate  them  in  regard 
to  their  proposed  new  settlement.  On  the  last  day  of  October 
Gist  set  out  by  way  of  Will's  creek,  since  called  Cumberland  river, 
for  the  Ohio.  At  Logstown,  a  little  below  the  she  of  the  present 
city  of  Pittsburg,  he  heard  of  George  Croghan,  an  envoy  from  the 
governor  of  Pennsylvania,  charged  with  friendly  communications  to 
several  tribes,  including  the  Twightwees,  or  Miamis,  next  to  the 
Iroquois  the  strongest  confederacy  of  Indians  on  this  continent,  and 
two  or  three  days  after  overtook  him,  at  Muskingum,  a  town  of  the 
Wyandots  and  Mingoes.  Croghan  had  raised  the  English  flag  over 
his  tent,  as  a  sign  of  opposition  to  the  French,  who  had  recently 
captured  three  white  men,  employed  in  the  fur  trade,  and  sent  them 
as  prisoners  to  Presqu'ile.  He  soon  after  concluded  a  treaty  of 


72  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1752. 

peace  and  alliance  between  the  English  of  Pennsylvania  and  the 
Weas  and  Piankeshas,  and  Gist  was  assured  that  all  the  friendly 
tribes  of  the  west  would  assemble  the  next  summer  at  Logstown  for 
a  general  negotiation  with  Virginia. 

The  meeting  of  the  representatives  of  the  Ohio  tribes  with  the 
commissioners  of  Virginia  took  place  at  the  time  appointed,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  none  of  the  settlements  which  might  be  made  by  the 
agents  of  the  company,  on  the  southeastern  side  of  the  river,  should 
be  disturbed.  Tanacharisson,  called  Half  King,  on  account  of  his 
subordination  to  the  Iroquois,  had  his  home  at  Logstown,  and  he 
advised  the  Virginians  to  build  a  fort  at  the  fork  of  the  Monongahela, 
as  a  means  of  resisting  the  designs  of  the  French.  Gist  was  accord 
ingly  instructed  to  commence  a  settlement  there,  with  suitable 
defences,  and  on  the  faith  of  the  treaty  he  was  joined  by  twelve 
families  of  adventurers. 

The  French  viewed  these  proceedings  with  jealousy,  and  sent 
emissaries  to  break  up  the  amicable  relations  established  between 
the  Indians  and  the  government  of  Virginia.  Succeeding  La  Jon 
quiere,*  M.  Duquesnef  had  become  governor  of  Canada,  and  upon 
a  rumor  that  he  had  detached  twelve  hundred  men  to  occupy  the 

valley  of  the  Ohio,  Tanacharisson  repaired  to  the  French  posts  on 

j 

*  The  Marquis  de  la  Jonquiere  arrived  in  Canada  in  August,  1749,  succeeding,  as  governor  gen 
eral,  the  accomplished  scholar,  soldier  and  statesman,  Lieutenant  General  Roland  Michel  Ban-in, 
Marquis  de  la  Galissoniere,  who  had  held  the  same  office  during  the  four  preceding  years.  La 
Jonquiere,  born  in  Languedoc  in  1696,  was  a  man  of  splendid  presence,  and  a  good  soldier,  but  was 
remarkable  for  excessive  avarice.  The  most  noticeable  point  of  his  administration  in  Canada  was 
an  attempt  to  suppress  the  order  of  the  Jesuits  there.  He  died  in  Quebec.  May  17,  1752. 

t  The  Marquis  de  Duquesne  de  Menneville,  whose  name  is  one  of  the  most  familiar  in  the  history 
of  the  French  dominion  in  America,  was  a  grandson  of  the  famous  admiral,  Abraham  Duquesne, 
and  was  himself  a  captain  in  the  royal  marine.  He  became  governor  general  of  Canada  in  1752, 
and  in  1754  was  recalled,  at  his  own  request,  to  re-enter  the  naval  service.  Before  leaving  Montreal, 
in  an  interview  with  deputies  from  the  Iroquois,  he  reproached  them  for  their  willingness  to 
surrender  the  control  of  the  Ohio  to  the  English  rather  than  to  the  French.  "  Are  you  ignorant," 
he  inquired,  "  of  the  difference  between  the  king  of  France  and  the  English  ?  Look  at  the  forts 
which  the  king  has  built :  you  will  find  that  under  the  very  shadows  of  their  walls  the  beasts  are 
hunted  and  slain ;  that  they  are,  in  fact,  fixed  in  the  places  most  frequented  by  you,  merely  to 
gratify  more  conveniently  your  necessities.  The  English,  on  the  contrary,  no  sooner  occupy  a  post, 
than  the  woods  fall  before  their  hands,  the  earth  is  subjected  to  cultivation,  the  game  disappears,  and 
your  people  are  soon  reduced  to  battle  with  starvation."  In  this  speech  he  accurately  described  the 
two  civilizations.  M.  Duquesne,  in  1758,  being  in  France,  was  appointed  to  the  command  of  all 
the  forces,  sea  and  land,  in  America,  and  in  March  sailed  from  Toulon,  with  a  small  squadron,  but 
was  soon  after  utterly  defeated  and  driven  back  by  the  English.—  Sec  Winthrop  Sargent's  Expedi 
tion  against  Fort  Duquesne. 


&T.  20.]  FRENCH  INTRIGUES.  73 

Lake  Erie  to  complain  in  person  of  their  intended  aggressions. 
" Fathers,"  said  he,  "you  are  disturbers  of  this  land,  by  building 
towns,  and  taking  it  from  us,  by  fraud  or  force.  We  kindled  a  fire 
long  ago  at  Montreal,  where  we  desired  you  to  stay,  and  not  to  come 
and  intrude  upon  our  country.  I  now  advise  you  to  return  thither, 
for  this  land  is  ours.  If  you  had  come  in  a  peaceable  manner,  like 
our  brothers  the  English,  we  should  have  traded  with  you  as  we  do 
with  them ;  but  that  you  should  come  and  take  our  possessions  by 
force,  and  build  houses  upon  them,  is  what  we  can  not  submit  to. 
Both  you  and  the  English  are  white.  We  live  in  a  region  between 
you  both.  The  land  belongs  to  neither  of  you.  The  Great  Being 
allotted  it  to  us  as  a  home.  So,  I  desire  you,  as  I  have  desired  our 
brothers  the  English,  to  withdraw,  for  I  will  keep  you  both  at  arms' 
length.  Whoever  most  regards  this  request,  by  them  we  will  stand, 
and  consider  them  friends.  Our  brothers  the  English  have  heard 
this,  and  I  now  come  to  tell  it  to  you."  And  he  gave  the  belt  of 
wampum.  The  French  commandant  treated  with  derision  the 
simple  and  dignified  words  of  the  chief.  "  Child,"  he  replied,  "  you 
talk  foolishly ;  you  say  this  land  belongs  to  you,  but  not  so  much 
of  it  as  the  black  of  your  nails  belongs  to  you.  It  is  mine,  and  I 
will  have  it,  let  who  will  stand  up  against  me."  And  he  threw  back 
the  belt  of  wampum  with  signs  of  contempt, 

Tanacharisson  was  wounded  and  dismayed  by  the  bold  language 
and  insolent  demeanor  of  the  Frenchman.  He  saw  the  approaching 
ruin  of  his  race,  but  continued  to  look  with  some  hope  to  the 
English,  as  less  disposed  than  the  French  to  do  them  wrong.  His 
favorable  disposition  was  strengthened  in  a  few  months  by  an  inter 
view  with  Franklin,  at  Carlisle,  in  Pennsylvania. 

Duquesne,  meanwhile,  was  active  in  carrying  out  the  policy 
enjoined  on  him  by  his  superiors.  The  advances  of  the  English 
into  the  interior  threatened  to  disturb  the  splendid  scheme  which 
the  French  had  steadily  pursued  for  years,  and  must  be  prevented 
at  every  hazard.  Missionaries  were  employed  to  persuade  the 
Indians  that  the  purposes  of  their  new  friends  were  treacherous 
and  dangerous.  Some  of  the  traders  were  seized  and  sent  to 


74  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

France,  and  a  fort  was  immediately  commenced  on  the  Buffalo 
river,*  as  a  position  from  which  the  Indians  could  be  controlled  and 
the  Virginians  held  in  check. 

In  1752  Robert  Dinwiddie,  a  shrewd  Scotchman,  previously  a 
clerk  in  one  of  the  custom  houses  of  the  West  Indies,  where  he 
had  commended  himself  for  favor  and  promotion  by  discovering  a 
vast  system  of  fraud  that  had  been  practised  by  his  superiors,  had 
arrived  in  Virginia  to  preside  over  her  councils  as  lieutenant 
governor.  In  December  of  the  same  year  he  had  sent  home  to  the 
Board  of  Trade  an  elaborate  report  on  the  condition  and  prospects 
of  the  colony,  and  solicited  particular  instructions  for  the  regulation 
of  his  conduct  in  resisting  the  French.  He  had  recommended  a 
series  of  western  forts,  and,  urging  the  benefits  of  an  intimate  alliance 
with  the  Miamas,  had  offered  to  cross  the  mountains  and  deliver  a 
present  to  them  in  person.  The  ministers  had  given  little  heed  to 
his  earnest  and  sensible  recommendations,  but  he  had  continued  to 
furnish  them  with  early  and  accurate  intelligence,  and  at  last,  in 
the  beginning  of  1753,  it  was  decided  at  Whitehall  that  the  pro 
ceedings  of  the  French  in  the  valley  of  the  Ohio  should  be  vigor 
ously  opposed.  Governor  Dinwiddie  was  reminded  of  the  military 
resources  of  Virginia,  but  neither  troops  nor  money  were  sent  over 
to  aid  him  in  the  proposed  war  against  France  for  the  conquest  of 
the  western  territory.  The  governor  of  Canada,  pursuing  his  plans 
with  characteristic  activity,  was  now,  it  seemed,  firmly  established 
on  the  Ohio  river.  The  approach  of  the  French  towards  the 
English  settlements  had  encouraged  their  Indian  allies  to  frequent 
and  bold  assaults  upon  them,  while  the  tribes  which  had  been 
friendly  to  the  English  were  overawed  and  shaken  in  their  fidelity. 

The  necessity  of  prompt  and  energetic  action,  for  self  preserva 
tion  as  well  as  for  the  vindication  of  the  rights  of  the  crown,  was 
apparent  to  every  body  who  gave  even  the  slightest  attention  to 
affairs,  and  Governor  Dinwiddie  lost  no  time  in  sending  Captain 
William  Trent  as  a  commissioner  to  expostulate  with  the  Frencli 

*  Now  called  French  creek,  in  Pennsylvania,  but  named  by  the  French  Riviere  aux  Boeufs,  on 
account  of  the  great  numbers  of  buffaloes  that  were  found  ill  its  vicinity. 


MT.  21.]  MISSION  TO  THE  OHIO.  75 

commander  on  the  Ohio  for  his  invasion  of  the  British  possessions. 
This  officer  seems  not  to  have  had  the  qualities  necessary  for  a  fit 
performance  of  his  duties,  and  after  reaching  Piqua,  the  principal 
town  of  the  Miamis,  where  Gist  and  Croghan  had  been  so  well 
received,  and  discovering  that  the  enemy's  flag  waved  above  its 
ruins,  and  that  generally  the  aspect  of  things  on  the  frontier  was 
more  threatening  than  he  had  anticipated,  he  abandoned  his  pur 
poses  and  returned  home. 

The  immediate  appointment  of  his  successor  was  resolved  upon, 
but  it  was  not  an  easy  matter  to  find  a  person  of  the  requisite 
moral  and  physical  capacities  for  so  responsible  and  hazardous  an 
enterprise. 

The  task  to  be  set  before  the  commissioner  was  undoubtedly  a 
very  difficult  one.  Four  or  five  hundred  miles  were  to  be  trav 
elled,  the  greater  part  of  the  way  through  a  wilderness,  made  more 
impassable  with  mountains  and  rivers,  and  inhabited  by  hostile 
Indians,  in  a  state  of  daily  increasing  irritation.  It  was  near  the 
end  of  October,  and  the  season  added  obstacles  almost  insur 
mountable. 

The  position  appears  to  have  been  offered  to  several  gentlemen, 
by  all  of  whom  it  was  declined,  when  the  governor  received  an 
intimation  that  it  would  be  accepted  by  Major  Washington.  Wash 
ington  was  now  twenty-one  years  of  age.  He  had  recently  come 
into  possession  of  the  fine  estate  of  Mount  Vernon,  and  had  there 
fore  unusual  temptations  to  avoid  so  laborious  and  dangerous  an 
undertaking.  But  his  whole  constitution  was  heroical,  and  it  was 
not  consistent  with  his  ideas  of  patriotism  to  shrink  from  any 
honorable  service  which  could  be  rendered  to  his  country.  Besides, 
he  was  ambitious,  and  ready  to  avail  himself  of  every  good  opportu 
nity  for  carving  his  way  to  eminent  distinction.  The  governor  was 
not  ignorant  of  his  reputation,  and  in  his  official  relations  had  prob 
ably  become  personally  acquainted  with  him.  He  accepted  his  offer, 
saying  at  the  time,  u  Faith !  you  are  a  brave  lad,  and  if  you  play 
your  cards  well  you  shall  have  no  cause  to  repent  your  bargain."* 

*  Paulding,  i.  5.?. 


76  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

Washington  received  his  commission  and  instructions,  and  a  pass 
port  under  the  great  seal  of  the  colony,  on  the  thirty-first  of  Octo 
ber.  He  was  directed  to  proceed  without  delay  to  Logstown,  and 
there  make  known  to  Tanacharisson,  Monacatoocha,  and  other 
friendly  chiefs,  the  purport  of  his  errand,  and  after  ascertaining 
where  the  French  were  stationed,  to  request  an  escort  of  warriors 
to  guide  and  protect  him  to  the  end  of  his  journey.  On  meet 
ing  the  French  commandant  he  was  to  exhibit  his  credentials, 
and  deliver  a  letter  from  the  governor  of  Virginia,  demanding 
an  answer,  in  the  name  of  the  king,  but  not  to  wait  for  one 
beyond  a  week.  He  was  also  to  inquire  diligently  as  to  the  num 
ber  of  the  French  troops  that  had  crossed  the  lakes,  the  means 
of  communication  with  Canada,  the  reinforcements  expected,  how 
many  forts  had  been  erected,  how  they  were  garrisoned  and  ap 
pointed,  and  their  distances  from  each  other;  and,  in  short,  to 
learn  every  thing  possible  respecting  the  condition,  prospects  and 
pretensions  of  the  intruders,  necessary  for  the  proper  information 
of  the  government. 

He  left  Williamsburg  the  same  day,  and  the  next  arrived  at 
Fredericksburg,  where  he  was  joined  by  his  old  fencing  master, 
Jacob  Yan  Braam,  whose  familiarity  with  the  French  language 
and  habits  was  deemed  of  great  importance  for  furthering  the 
objects  of  the  expedition.  He  also  engaged  John  Davidson,  an 
Indian  interpreter.  At  Alexandria  he  provided  himself  with  such 
means  of  comfort  as  could  be  conveniently  carried,  and  at  Win 
chester,  then  on  the  frontier,  with  horses,  tents,  and  other  travel 
ing  equipments;  and  on  the  fourteenth  of  November,  by  a  road 
which  had  been  opened  by  the  Ohio  Company,  reached  Will's 
creek.  Here  he  found  Mr.  Gist,  whom  he  engaged  to  accompany 
him  as  a  guide,  and  four  other  men,  two  of  them  Indian  traders, 
were  hired  as  attendants. 

The  party,  now  increased  to  eight  persons,  with  horses,  tents, 
provisions,  and  other  things  necessary  for  the  expedition,  the  next 
day  entered  the  wilderness.  The  season  was  more  than  usually 
unfavorable.  There  had  been  heavy  and  frequent  rains,  and  before 


MT.  21.]  PROJECTED  FORTIFICATION.  77 

the  ground  was  frozen  snow  had  fallen  to  the  depth  of  more  than 
six  inches.  The  streams  were  much  swollen,  and  the  common 
difficulties  of  fording  them  or  crossing  them  on  rafts  were  greatly 
increased.  They  were  seven  days  in  reaching  John  Frazier's  peltry 
house,  at  the  junction  of  Turtle  creek  with  the  Monongahela,  a 
distance  of  but  eighty  miles.  They  were  hospitably  entertained 
by  Frazier,  who  loaned  them  a  canoe,  in  which  two  of  the  men  were 
sent  with  the  luggage  ten  miles  farther,  to  the  place  where  the 
Monongahela  and  Alleghany  rivers  unite  to  form  the  Ohio.  "  As  I 
got  down  before  the  canoe,"  he  writes  in  his  journal,  a  I  spent  some 
time  in  viewing  the  rivers,  and  the  land  in  the  fork,  which  I  think 
extremely  well  situated  for  a  fort,  as  it  has  the  absolute  command 
of  both  rivers.  The  land  at  the  point  is  twenty  or  twenty-five  feet 
above  the  common  surface  of  the  water,  with  a  considerable  bottom 
of  flat  well  timbered  land  all  around  it,  very  convenient  for  build 
ing.  The  rivers  are  each  a  quarter  of  a  mile  or  more  across,  and 
run  here  nearly  at  right  angles :  the  Alleghany  bearing  northeast, 
and  the  Monongahela  southeast.  The  former  of  these  two  is  very 
rapid  and  swift  running  water,  the  other  deep  and  still,  without  any 
perceptible  fall."  The  Ohio  Company  had  determined  to  erect  a 
fort  two  miles  farther  down,  but  Washington  was  impressed  with 
the  advantages  this  point  afforded  as  a  military  post,  and  it  was 
by  his  advice  that  a  fortification  was  soon  after  commenced  here. 
French  engineers  subsequently  approved  his  judgment  by  selecting 
the  same  site  for  the  fort  which  was  so  long  celebrated  under  the 
name  of  Duquesne. 

Being  joined  by  Shingis,  head  sachem  of  the  Delawares,  they 
hastened  onward  to  Logstown,  about  twenty  miles  below  the  conflu 
ence  of  the  rivers,  where  they  arrived  on  the  evening  of  Saturday  the 
twenty-fourth  of  the  month.  Tanacharisson  was  absent  on  a  hunt, 
but  messengers  were  despatched  to  summon  him  and  other  chiefs 
to  a  meeting  on  Monday.  On  Sunday  morning  four  French  soldiers 
came  into  the  town.  They  had  deserted  from  a  company  of  one 
hundred  men  sent  up  from  New  Orleans,  with  eight  canoes  laden 
with  provisions,  expecting  to  meet  at  Logstown  a  detachment  from 


78  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

the  garrison  near  Lake  Erie.  Washington  obtained  from  them 
an  account  of  the  French  force  at  New  Orleans,  and  of  the  forts 
along  the  Mississippi  and  at  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash,  by  which 
they  maintained  a  communication  with  the  lakes.  The  deserters 
were  on  their  way,  under  the  direction  of  a  Pennsylvania  trader, 
to  Philadelphia.  The  half  king  came  in  during  the  afternoon, 
and  he  had  a  long  conference  with  him,  in  which  the  chief  gave 
a  narrative  of  his  visit  to  the  commandant  of  the  French  posts  on 
Lake  Erie,  and  exhibited  a  drawing,  made  by  himself,  of  two  forts 
which  had  been  built,  one  on  the  lake,  and  the  other  at  a  creek 
fifteen  miles  inland. 

On  the  following  morning  at  an  early  hour  the  chiefs  met  in 
council,  and  Washington  addressed  them  in  a  speech,  which  was 
interpreted  by  Davidson,  explaining  the  objects  of  his  mission,  and 
the  wishes  of  the  governor  of  Virginia  in  regard  to  themselves. 
He  then  gave  them  a  string  of  wampum,  the  usual  token  of  friend 
ship  and  alliance,  and  when  they  had  consulted  together  Tanacha- 
risson  was  deputed  to  answer  him.  His  words  were  pacific.  They 
would  give  back  to  the  French  their  "speech  belt,"  by  which 
act  all  amicable  relations  with  them  would  be  ended,  and  would 
furnish  the  commissioner  from  Virginia  an  escort,  composed  of 
Mingoes,  Shawnees,  and  Delawares,  to  show  the  fraternal  feelings 
of  these  tribes  •  but  the  young  warriors  being  out  on  a  hunting 
party,  he  was  requested  to  wait  three  days  for  their  return. 

As  he  had  orders  to  make  all  possible  despatch,  and  the  thought 
of  waiting  at  Logstown  was  very  disagreeable  to  him,  he  told  the 
chief,  while  thanking  him,  that  his  business  would  not  admit  of  that 
delay.  Tanacharisson  was  not  well  pleased  that  his  arrangement 
was  declined,  and  Washington  consented  to  remain,  but  finally,  on 
the  morning  of  the  thirtieth,  set  out  with  only  Tanacharisson  and 
four  other  Indians,  one  of  whom  was  an  aged  chief  named  Jeska- 
kake,  who  on  the  previous  evening,  in  the  council  house,  had 
rehearsed  the  speech  he  was  to  deliver  to  the  French.  It  was 
agreed  that  unless  they  would  heed  this  new  warning  to  leave  the 
country  the  Delawares  also  would  be  their  enemies,  and  a  large 


j£T.  21.]  CAPTAIN  JONCAIRE.  79 

string  of  black  and  white  wampum  was  despatched  to  the  Iroquois 
as  a  prayer  for  assistance. 

The  imperfect  fulfilment  of  the  promises  given  to  Washington 
on  his  arrival  at  Logstown  had  a  secret  cause  which  was  probably 
much  more  efficient  than  any  that  was  avowed.  The  chiefs  had 
heard  that  Captain  Joncaire,  an  old  and  well  known  agent  of  the 
governors  general  in  their  dealings  with  the  Indians,  had  called 
together  a  considerable  number  from  the  Mingoes,  Delawares,  and 
other  disaffected  or  doubtful  tribes,  and  informed  them  that  the 
French,  although  for  the  present  they  had  gone  into  winter  quarters, 
would  assuredly  in  the  spring  go  down  the  river  in  great  force  to 
attack  the  English,  whom  they  should  conquer,  and  that  he  had 
advised  them  to  remain  passive,  saying  that  if  they  should  inter 
fere  the  French  and  English  would  unite,  cut  them  all  off,  and 
divide  their  land  between  them.  With  such  rumors  preying  on 
their  minds  the  poor  savages  naturally  hesitated  a  little  about  com 
mitting  themselves  irretrievably  to  either  party. 

The  distance  to  the  head  quarters  of  the  French  was  one  hundred 
and  twenty  miles.  The  intermediate  post,  under  the  command  of 
Joncaire,  at  Venango,  was  not  much  more  than  half  way,  but  such 
was  the  inclemency  of  the  weather  and  the  difficulty  of  traveling 
that  four  days  were  spent  before  Washington  and  his  companions 
reached  that  ancient  Indian  town.* 

The  commander  of  this  advanced  post,  Captain  Joncaire,  had 
lived  among  the  Indians  nearly  all  his  life,  and  he  was  now  an  old 
man.  Taken  prisoner  in  his  youth  by  the  Iroquois,  he  had  been 
adopted  into  one  of  their  tribes,  and  had  grown  up  in  familiarity 
with  their  language,  habits  and  feelings.  Returning  to  Canada, 
and  resuming  the  usages  of  civilized  life,  he  entered  the  military 
service  and  became  the  frequent  agent  of  the  government  in  its 
various  transactions  and  intrigues  with  the  Indians,  and  was  some 
times  their  leader  when  they  were  employed  by  the  French  in 
warlike  enterprises.  He  was  witty,  eloquent,  and  ingenious,  and 
seldom  failed  in  his  diplomacy.  In  the  recent  proceedings  west  of 

*  Venango  is  now  Franklin,  the  seat  of  justice  for  Franklin  county,  Pennsylvania. 


80  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

the  Alleghanies  he  had  been  conspicuous  ever  since  the  agents 
of  the  Ohio  Company  first  undertook  the  exploration  of  that  con 
tested  region. 

When  Washington,  on  arriving  at  Venango,  rode  to  a  house 
above  which  was  displayed  the  French  flag,  and  inquired  of  an 
officer  whom  he  saw  there  where  he  might  find  the  commandant, 
the  person  he  addressed  answered  that  he  was  himself  Captain 
Joncaire,  and  had  the  command  of  the  Ohio.  Being  informed  of 
Washington's  business,  he  said  there  was  a  general  officer  at  Fort 
Le  Boeuf,  who  wrould  attend  to  it ;  and  thereupon  invited  the  party 
of  the  expedition  to  sup  with  him  at  his  quarters. 

Joncaire  and  his  friends,  says  Washington,  "  treated  us  with  the 
greatest  complaisance.  The  wine,  as  they  dosed  themselves  pretty 
plentifully  with  it,  soon  banished  the  restraint  which  at  first  ap 
peared  in  their  conversation.  They  told  me  it  was  their  design  to 
take  possession  of  the  Ohio,  and,  by  God,  they  would  do  it :  for 
that,  although  they  were  sensible  the  English  could  raise  two  men 
for  their  one,  yet  they  knew  their  motions  were  too  slow  and  dilatory 
to  prevent  the  success  of  any  undertaking.  They  pretend  to  have 
an  undoubted  right  to  the  river,  from  a  discovery  made  by  one 
La  Salle,  sixty  years  ago,  and  the  rise  of  this  expedition  is  to  pre 
vent  our  .settling  on  the  river,  or  the  waters  of  it,  as  they  heard  of 
some  families  moving  out  in  order  thereto." 

The  Marquis  de  Duquesne,  according  to  M.  Pouchot,  a  contempo 
rary  French  officer  of  rank,  soon  after  arriving  in  Quebec  had  be 
come  the  lover  of  a  beautiful  woman  whose  husband  could  be  con 
veniently  removed  only  by-  giving  him  profitable  employments  or 
contracts  in  connection  with  distant  military  operations.  It  is 
alleged  that  the  amours  of  the  governor  general  led  to  the  building 
of  forts,  and  to  the  purchase  of  extraordinary  supplies  of  rich  stuffs 
of  silk  and  velvet,  and  costly  Spanish  wines,  to  be  sent  into  the 
wilderness  for  the  king's  service.  To  each  of  the  officers,  according 
to  this  respectable  chronicler,  was  allotted  a  bottle  of  wine  every 
day,  two  gallons  of  brandy  a  month,  and  food  in  proportion. 
Washington,  with  his  companions,  Van  Braam,  Gist,  and  Davidson, 


/ET.  '21.]  INTRIGUES  WITH  THE  INDIANS.  81 

we  may  therefore  suppose  was  entertained  in  the  most  generous 
manner  by  Captain  Joncaire  and  his  associates ;  but  he  appears  not 
for  a  moment  to  have  relaxed  his  watchful  interest  in  their  discourse, 
and  before  the  drunken  party  broke  up  he  had  acquired  much 
interesting  and  important  intelligence  concerning  the  resources, 
movements  and  intentions  of  the  French,  which  he  might  have 
sought  for  in  vain  by  any  ordinary  means  of  discovery. 

The  next  day  excessive  and  continued  rain  prevented  traveling. 
"  Captain  Joncaire,"  says  Washington,  "  sent  for  the  half  king,  as  he 
had  just  heard  that  he  came  with  me.  He  affected  to  be  much 
concerned  that  I  did  not  make  free  to  bring  the  chiefs  in  before.  I 
excused  it  in  the  best  manner  of  which  I  was  capable,  and  told  him 
I  did  not  think  their  company  agreeable,  as  I  had  heard  him  say  a 
good  deal  in  dispraise  of  Indians  in  general.  But  another  motive 
prevented  me  from  bringing  them  into  his  company  :  I  knew  that  he 
was  an  interpreter,  and  a  person  of  very  great  influence  among  the 
Indians,  and  had  lately  used  all  possible  means  to  draw  them  over 
to  his  interest.  Therefore  I  was  desirous  of  giving  him  no  oppor 
tunity  that  could  be  avoided.  When  they  came  in,  there  was 
great  pleasure  expressed  at  seeing  them.  He  wondered  how  they 
could  be  so  near  without  coming  to  visit  him ;  made  several  trifling 
presents ;  and  applied  liquor  so  fast  that  they  were  soon  rendered 
incapable  of  the  business  they  came  about,  notwithstanding  the 
caution  which  was  given  them." 

The  following  forenoon  Tanacharisson  made  his  appearance  in 
Washington's  tent,  quite  sober,  and  doubtless  humbled  by  a  recollec 
tion  of  his  weakness.  He  had  however  been  persuaded  that  the  man 
agement  of  Indian  affairs  was  confided  entirely  to  Monsieur  Joncaire, 
and  had  made  up  his  mind  to  deliver  to  him  his  speech.  As  Wash 
ington  was  desirous  of  knowing  the  issue  of  a  proceeding  which  he 
perceived  that  he  could  not  prevent,  he  agreed  to  remain  until  the 
next  morning,  but  sent  the  horses  and  luggage  a  little  way  up  the 
creek,  with  instructions  to  his  servants  to  raft  over  and  encamp. 
About  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  French  and  Indians  met 
around  the  council  fire,  and  Tanacharisson  made  a  speech,  similar 

6 


82  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

to  that  I  have  already  quoted  as  addressed  by  him  to  the  French 
general.  He  ended  by  offering  to  return  the  French  their  speech 
belt,  but  this  Joncaire  declined  receiving,  telling  him  to  carry  it  for 
ward  to  the  officer  in  command  at  Le  Boeuf. 

It  was  not  without  extreme  difficulty  that  Washington  could 
prevail  on  the  Indians  to  accompany  him,  as  every  stratagem  that 
could  be  devised  had  been  used  to  prevent  their  doing  so.  At  noon 
on  the  seventh,  however,  they  started  for  Le  Boeuf,  accompanied  by 
a  meddlesome  French  commissary  named  La  Force,  with  three 
soldiers.  Four  days  more  of  bleak  and  cold  December  weather, 
varied  with  heavy  rains  and  snows,  were  spent  in  traveling  "  through 
many  mires  and  swamps,"  which  they  "were  obliged  to  pass  to 
avoid  crossing  the  creek,  which  was  impassable,  either  by  fording  or 
rafting,  the  water  was  so  high  and  rapid."  They  finally  reached 
their  destination*  on  the  evening  of  the  eleventh  of  December, 
being  the  forty-first  day  after  the  departure  of  Major  Washington 
from  Williamsburg. 

*  Fort  Le  Boeuf  was  on  the  ground  now  occupied  by  the  village  of  Waterford,  Erie  county, 
Pennsylvania,  thirteen  miles  from  Fresqu'ile,  now  Erie, 


.  21.]  LEGARDEUR  DE  ST.  PIERRE.  83 


CHAPTEE   IX, 

FORT  LE  BCEUF THE  CHEVALIER  LEGARDEUR  DE  ST.  PIERRE HIS  RECEPTION  OF 

MAJOR  WASHINGTON OCCURRENCES  AT  THE  FORT  — ATTEMPTS  TO  SEDUCE  THE 

FRIENDLY  INDIANS WASHINGTON    TAKES  LEAVE   OF    THE    FRENCH    COMMANDER 

A  TRAMP  IN  THE  SNOW SEPARATION  OF    THE    PARTY MURDERING  TOWN 

A  TREACHEROUS  GUIDE PERILOUS  ADVENTURES RAFTING  ACROSS  THE  ALLK- 

GHANY VISIT     TO    QUEEN     ALLIQUIPPA PARTING     WITH     GIST ARRIVAL    AT 

WILLIAMSBURG REPORT  TO  THE  GOVERNOR PUBLICATION  OF  JOURNAL. 

THE  fort  at  Le  Boeuf  was  on  a  small  island  or  peninsula  in  the 
creek  of  the  same  name,  about  thirteen  miles  from  Lake  Erie.  It 
consisted  of  four  buildings,  arranged  so  as  to  form  a  hollow  square, 
and  was  protected  by  bastions,  made  of  palisades,  twelve  feet  high, 
with  openings  for  cannon  and  for  small  arms.  Each  of  these  bas 
tions  was  large  enough  to  mount  eight  six  pounders.  Inside  of 
them  were  the  lodgings  of  the  officers,  a  chapel,  store  house,  and 
guard  house,  and,  outside,  several  barracks  and  stables,  and  a  smith's 
shop. 

The  morning  after  his  arrival  Washington  called  at  the  gate, 
accompanied  by  M.  Yan  Braam,  to  pay  his  respects  and  announce 
the  object  of  his  mission.  The  second  officer  received  him  and 
conducted  him  to  the  commandant,  Legardeur  de  St.  Pierre,  a  vete 
ran  knight  of  the  military  order  of  St.  Louis,  with  a  high  reputation 
for  courage  and  integrity,  whose  hard  service  in  European  wars 
was  indicated  by  scars  of  sabre  cuts  and  the  loss  of  one  of  his  eyes. 
He  had  arrived  from  Montreal  but  seven  days  before,  and  was 
unwilling  to  proceed  to  business  until  he  could  summon  Captain 
Reparti,  who  was  in  charge  of  the  fort  on  the  lake.  At  two  o'clock 
the  captain  arrived,  and  Washington  submitted  his  credentials  and 
the  letter  of  Governor  Dinwiddie,  which  were  received  in  due  form, 
after  which  the  commandant  with  his  officers,  of  whom  a  consider- 


84  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

able  number  were  present,  retired  to  a  private  apartment  for  their 
examination  and  translation.  When  M.  Keparti,  who  is  described 
as  understanding  "a  little  English,"  had  completed  his  version, 
Washington  was  invited  to  go  in,  with  his  interpreter,  to  peruse  and 
correct  it,  and,  having  done  so,  they  were  politely  dismissed  until  the 
following  day. 

The  answer  to  the  governor's  letter  was  not  delivered  until  the 
second  evening  afterwards,  and  in  the  meanwhile  Washington  was 
careful  to  observe  and  record  every  thing  of  interest  connected 
with  the  place,  and  to  obtain  all  the  information  possible  respecting 
the  fortifications  and  settlements  of  the  French  in  that  part  of  the 
country.  The  efforts  commenced  at  Venango  to  alienate  Tana- 
charisson  and  his  brother  chiefs  from  their  relations  with  the  English, 
were  continued  here,  with  great  pertinacity.  When  Washington 
heard  this  he  urged  the  Indians  to  surrender  immediately  their 
speech  belts,  as  they  had  promised,  that  the  French  might  be  aware 
of  their  intentions  and  therefore  cease  to  tamper  with  them.  They 
accordingly  pressed  for  an  audience  the  same  evening,  and  at  length 
were  admitted,  privately,  to  an  interview  with  M.  de  St.  Pierre  and 
one  or  two  of  his  confidential  subordinates.  The  half  king  reported 
the  result.  The  chevalier  declined  receiving  the  proffered  wampum, 
and  made  many  fair  promises  of  friendship,  saying  he  wished  to 
live  in  peace  and  trade  amicably  with  the  tribes  of  the  Ohio,  in 
proof  of  which  he  would  at  once  send  some  goods  for  them  to 
Logstown.  Understanding,  privately,  that  a  military  officer  was  to 
accompany  the  carriers  of  these  goods,  Washington  was  induced  to 
suspect  that  it  was  designed  to  bring  off  all  the  straggling  English 
traders  they  should  meet,  and  the  suspicion  was  made  a  certainty 
by  the  commandant,  who,  when  asked  by  what  authority  he  had 
made  prisoners  of  several  British  subjects,  replied  that  the  country 
belonged  to  the  French,  that  no  Englishman  had  a  right  to  trade  in 
it,  and  that  he  had  orders  to  capture  every  one  who  should  attempt 
to  deal  with  the  Indians  on  the  Ohio  or  its  waters. 

Governor  Dinwiddie  declared  in  his  letter  that  the  lands  on  the 
Ohio  belonged  to  the  crown  of  Great  Britain,  complained  of  the 


JET.  2].]  M.  DE  ST.  PIERRE'S  ANSWER.  85 

intrusion  of  the  French,  demanded  by  what  authority  an  armed  force 
had  crossed  the  lakes,  and  requested  their  speedy  departure.  In  its 
conclusion  he  wrote,  "I  persuade  myself  you  will  receive  and  enter 
tain  Major  Washington  with  the  candor  and  politeness  natural  to 
your  nation,  and  it  will  give  me  the  greatest  satisfaction  if  you  can 
return  him  with  an  answer  suitable  to  my  wishes  for  a  long  and 
lasting  peace  between  us." 

On  the  fourteenth  M.  de  St.  Pierre  delivered  his  reply,  which 
was  such  as  became  a  soldier,  who  was  vested  with  no  diplomatic 
powers.  He  should  transmit  the  letter  of  the  governor  of  Virginia 
to  the  governor  of  Canada,  to  whom,  he  observed,  "  it  better  belongs 
than  to  me  to  set  forth  the  evidence  and  reality  of  the  rights  of 
the  king,  my  master,  upon  the  land  situated  along  the  Ohio,  and  to 
contest  the  pretensions  of  the  king  of  Great  Britain  thereto.  His 
answer  shall  be  law  to  me....  As  to  the  summons  you  send  me 
to  retire,  I  do  not  think  myself  obliged  to  obey  it.  Whatever  may 
be  your  instructions,  I  am  here  by  virtue  of  the  orders  of  my  gen 
eral  ;  and  I  entreat  you,  sir,  not  to  doubt  one  moment  that  I  am 
determined  to  conform  myself  to  them  with  all  the  exactness  and 
resolution  which  can  be  expected  from  the  best  officer. ...  I  made 
it  my  particular  care  to  receive  Mr.  Washington  with  a  distinction 
suitable  to  your  dignity,  as  well  as  to  his  own  quality  and  great 
merit.  I  flatter  myself  that  he  will  do  me  this  justice  before  you, 
sir,  and  that  he  will  signify  to  you,  in  the  manner  I  do  myself,  the 
profound  respect  with  which  I  am,  sir,"  &c. 

Although  the  contents  of  this  letter  were  not  communicated  to 
Washington,  his  conversations  with  M.  de  St.  Pierre  and  his  officers, 
and  the  whole  complexion  of  affairs  on  the  frontier,  left  no  doubt 
in  his  mind  as  to  its  nature,  and  he  was  anxious  to  start  imme 
diately  upon  his  homeward  journey,  that  no  time  might  be  lost  in 
submitting  it  with  his  report  to  Governor  Dinwidclie. 

As  the  weather  was  stormy,  with  much  snow,  and  the  horses, 
wanting  proper  stabling  and  provender,  were  every  day  losing 
strength,  he  had  sent  them  back  to  Yenango,  resolving  to  go  down 
with  his  interpreters  and  the  sachems  by  water,  in  a  canoe  which 


66  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

had  been  offered  him  for  that  purpose.  But  he  found  that  expe 
dients  were  still  plied  to  detain  the  Indians.  The  friendship  of 
Tanacharisson  was  of  too  much  importance  to  be  yielded  without 
many  efforts  to  retain  it.  "  The  commandant/'  he  writes,  "  ordered 
a  plentiful  store  of  liquor  and  provisions  to  be  put  on  board  of  our 
canoes,  and  appeared  to  be  extremely  complaisant,  though  he  was 
exerting  every  artifice  which  he  could  think  of  to  set  our  Indians 
at  variance  with  us,  to  prevent  their  going  until  after  our  departure  : 
presents,  rewards,  and  every  thing  wrhich  could  be  suggested  by 
him  or  his  officers.  I  can  not  say  that  ever  in  my  life  I  suffered  so 
much  anxiety  as  I  did  in  this  affair.  I  saw  that  every  stratagem 
which  the  most  fruitful  brain  could  invent  was  practised  to  wrin  the 
half  king  to  their  interest,  and  that  leaving  him  there  was  giving  them 
the  opportunity  they  aimed  it.  I  wTent  to  the  half  king  and  pressed 
him  in  the  strongest  terms  to  go ;  he  told  me  the  commandant 
would  not  discharge  him  till  morning;  I  then  went  to  the  com 
mandant  and  desired  him  to  do  their  business,  and  complained  of 
ill  treatment ;  for,  keeping  them,  as  they  were  part  of  my  company, 
was  detaining  me.  This  he  promised  not  to  do,  but  to  forward  my 
journey  as  much  as  he  could.  He  protested  that  he  did  not  keep 
them,  but  was  ignorant  of  the  cause  of  their  stay,  though  I  soon 
found  it  out :  he  had  promised  them  a  present  of  guns  and  other 
things  if  they  wrould  wait  until  morning.  As  I  was  very  much 
pressed  by  the  Indians  to  wrait  this  day  for  them,  I  consented,  on  a 
promise  that  nothing  should  hinder  them  in  the  morning."  On  the 
sixteenth  the  French  continued  their  intrigues,  but  without  success. 
They  were  obliged  to  fulfil  their  promise  in  respect  to  the  guns,  but 
endeavored  next  to  detain  the  chiefs  with  liquor,  which  at  any 
other  time  would  probably  have  prevailed ;  but  Washington  insisted 
with  Tanacharisson  so  closely  upon  his  word,  that  he  resisted  the 
temptation  and  set  out  for  Venango. 

They  had  a  tedious  and  fatiguing  passage  down  the  creek.  Sev 
eral  times  there  was  danger  that  the  canoe  would  be  staved  against 
the  rocks,  and  the  entire  party  were  frequently  compelled  to  get 
out  and  remain  in  the  water  half  an  hour  or  more,  getting  over  the 


Mr.  21.]  A  MARCH  ON  FOOT.  87 

shoals.  At  one  place  the  ice  had  lodged,  making  the  creek  quite 
impassable,  and  Washington,  Gist,  Van  Braam,  and  Davidson,  were 
obliged  to  carry  their  canoe  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  across  a  neck  of 
land,  where  they  again  launched  it.  Here  they  were  rejoined  by 
the  Indians,  who  had  been  separated  from  them,  and  had  been  so 
fortunate  as  to  kill  three  bears  on  the  way.  The  Indians  were 
accompanied  by  some  Frenchmen,  in  a  canoe  with  presents,  and 
Gist  alludes  to  them  in  his  journal,*  for  the  twenty-second,  with 
characteristic  feeling.  "  The  creek  began  to  be  very  low,"  he  says, 
"  and  we  were  forced  to  get  out,  to  keep  our  canoe  from  oversetting, 
several  times — the  water  freezing  to  our  clothes.  We  had  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  the  French  upset,  and  the  brandy  and  wine 
floating  in  the  creek,  and  we  ran  by  them  and  left  them  to  shift  for 
themselves."  That  night  they  reached  Venango,  where  they  found 
their  horses  and  men. 

Washington  was  now  compelled  to  part  with  the  chiefs,  one  of 
whom  had  been  injured  in  some  way  so  that  he  could  not  travel. 
He  was  apprehensive  of  evil  from  the  shrewd  management  of  the 
expeiienced  Captain  Joncaire,  and  warned  Tanacharisson  against 
his  machinations ;  but  the  sachem  desired  him  not  to  be  concerned : 
he  knew  the  French  too  well  for  any  thing  to  engage  him  in  their 
favor. 

The  horses  were  so  emaciated  and  jaded  that  it  was  doubtful 
whether  they  could  ever  cross  the  mountains.  The  provisions  and 
other  luggage  were  to  be  transported  on  their  backs,  and  to  lighten 
their  burden  as  much  as  possible  Washington,  Gist,  and  the  inter 
preters,  determined  to  proceed  on  foot,  confiding  them  to  the  direc 
tion  of  the  servants.  Washington  put  on  an  Indian  walking  dress, 
and  continued  with  them  three  days,  when,  finding  that  there  was 
no  probability  of  their  getting  home  in  any  reasonable  time,  that 
the  beasts  became  less  able  to  travel  every  day,  that  the  cold  in 
creased  very  fast,  and  that  the  roads  were  becoming  much  worse 
by  a  deep  snow,  continually  freezing,  he  determined  to  proceed  in 

*  Printed,  with  notes  by  Dr.  Mease,  in  the  Collections  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society, 
third  series,  vol.  v. 


88  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

advance,  the  nearest  way,  through  the  woods.  Leaving  the  rest  of 
the  party,  with  the  luggage,  in  charge  of  Van  Bra  am,  therefore, 
with  money  and  directions  to  provide  necessaries  from  place  to 
place,  and  orders  to  go  on  as  rapidly  as  he  could,  he  tied  a  heavy 
watch  coat  close  about  him,  and,  with  gun  in  hand,  and  a  knapsack, 
containing  provisions  and  his  papers,  on  his  shoulders,  left  the 
cavalcade,  accompanied  only  by  Mr.  Gist,  who  was  equipped  in  the 
same  manner. 

Abandoning  the  beaten  path,  they  directed  their  way  through  the 
woods  so  as  to  cross  the  Alleghany  near  Shannopinstown,  two  or 
three  miles  above  the  intersection  of  that  river  with  the  Mononga- 
hela.  Washington's  own  account  of  the  hardships  and  dangers 
which  succeeded  is  modest  and  subdued  but  extremely  interesting. 
The  narrative  of  Mr.  Gist  is  in  this  part  more  ample,  but  perfectly 
consistent  with  that  of  his  leader.  "I  was  unwilling,"  writes  the 
guide,  "that  he  should  undertake  such  a  march,  who  had  never 
been  used  to  walking,  before  this  time ;  but  as  he  insisted  on  it,  we 
set  out,  with  our  packs,  like  Indians,  and  travelled  eighteen  miles. 
That  night  we  lodged  at  an  Indian  cabin,  and  the  major  was  much 
fatigued.  It  was  very  cold :  all  the  small  streams  were  frozen,  so 
that  we  could  hardly  get  water  to  drink."  At  two  o'clock  the  next 
morning  they  were  again  on  foot,  and  pressed  forward  until  they 
struck  the  southeast  branch  of  Beaver  creek,  at  a  place  called 
Murderingtown,  the  scene,  probably,  of  some  Indian  massacre. 
"Here,"  proceeds  Mr.  Gist,  "we  met  with  an  Indian,  whom  I  thought 
I  had  seen  at  Joncaire's,  at  Venango,  when  on  our  journey  up  to 
the  French  fort.  This  fellow  called  me  by  my  Indian  name,  and 
pretended  to  be  glad  to  see  me.  He  asked  us  several  questions,  as, 
how  came  we  to  travel  on  foot,  when  we  left  Venango,  where  we 
parted  from  our  horses,  and  when  they  would  be  there.  Major 
Washington  insisted  upon  traveling  on  the  nearest  way  to  the  forks 
of  the  Alleghany.  We  asked  the  Indian  if  he  could  go  with  us 
and  show  us  the  nearest  way.  He  seemed  very  glad  and  ready  to 
do  so ;  upon  which  we  set  out,  and  he  took  the  major's  pack.  We 
traveled  quite  briskly  for  eight  or  ten  miles,  when  the  major's  feet 


[3 


m 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  WAR.  93 


CHAPTER    X. 

MEASURES    INDUCED    BY    MAJOR    WASHINGTON'S    REPORT VIRGINIA    APPEALS    TO 

THE     OTHER    COLONIES CAPTAIN    TRENT     SENT     TO    THE     OHIO WASHINGTON 

STATIONED    AT    ALEXANDRIA TEMPER    OF     THE     HOUSE    OF     BURGESSES SUP 
PLIES  VOTED WASHINGTON  MADE  A  LIEUTENANT    COLONEL MUSE,    A    MAJOR, 

AND    VAN    BRAAM    A    CAPTAIN MARCH     TO     THE     FRONTIER CAPTAIN    TRENT'S 

CONDUCT M.  CONTRECOEUR CAPITULATION    OF    ENSIGN    WARD OPENING    OF 

THE    SEVEN    YEARS*  WAR MESSAGE    FROM  TANACHARISSON LETTERS    TO    THE 

GOVERNORS  OF  VIRGINIA,  MARYLAND,  AND  PENNSYLVANIA. 

THE  result  of  Major  Washington's  expedition  to  the  neighbor 
hood  of  Lake  Erie  justified  the  darkest  apprehensions  of  Governor 
Dinwiddie.  It  was  no  longer  possible  to  doubt  that  an  aggressive 
policy  had  been  determined  upon  and  commenced  by  the  French 
government,  and  that  it  must  be  promptly  and  vigorously  met  by 
an  appeal  to  arms,  if  Great  Britain  would  retain  her  American 
possessions,  or  her  colonies  would  save  themselves  from  the  hor 
rors  of  border  warfare  and  ultimate  destruction.  Anticipating  the 
state  of  things  contemplated  by  the  ministry,  when  imposing  it  as 
a  duty  in  case  of  an  invasion  of  the  king's  dominions  to  repel  it  by 
force,  the  governor  had  already  attempted  to  awaken  the  assembly 
to  a  sense  of  danger,  but  no  supplies  had  been  voted  for  military 
purposes.  He  now  summoned  a  convention  of  the  house  of  bur 
gesses,  sent  agents  to  effect  alliances  with  the  southern  Indian  tribes, 
the  Catawbas  and  Cherokees,  and  called  upon  the  governors  of  the 
other  colonies  to  make  common  cause  with  Virginia  against  the 
enemy.  But  the  colonies  were  still  isolated  from  each  other,  and 
easily  found  excuses  for  keeping  as  much  as  possible  aloof  from  a 
controversy  in  which  they  were  not  immediately  interested.  Massa 
chusetts,  indeed,  saw  the  French  establishing  themselves  on  her  own 
eastern  frontier,  and  holding  Crown  Point  on  the  northwest,  so  that 


94  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

she  could  well  allege  the  need  of  all  her  resources  at  home.  Besides, 
only  the  governor  of  Virginia  had  received  such  instructions  as 
would  justify  even  a  defensive  war  against  France. 

Before  the  burgesses  came  together,  Governor  Dinwiddie,  by 
advice  of  his  council,  ordered  the  enlistment  of  two  companies,  of 
one  hundred  men  each,  in  the  northern  counties,  and  Major  Wash 
ington  was  appointed  to  the  chief  command  of  them.  The  first 
recruits,  principally  traders  and  backwoodsmen,  were  placed  under 
the  orders  of  Captain  Trent,  who  was  well  acquainted  on  the 
frontiers,  and  supposed  to  be  capable  of  exercising  a  powerful  influ 
ence  over  the  Indians,  through  his  brother  in  law,  George  Croghan. 
Trent  was  directed  to  take  a  position  on  the  fork  of  the  Ohio,  before 
the  French  should  come  down  the  river  from  Le  Bceuf  and  unite 
with  the  forces  expected  from  the  Mississippi,  and  to  commence 
without  delay  the  building  of  a  fort  there,  in  pursuance  of  the 
recommendation  of  Major  Washington.  Though  enjoined  to  act 
only  on  the  defensive,  he  was  to  drive  away,  kill,  destroy,  or  seize  as 
prisoners,  all  persons  who  might  attempt  to  obstruct  that  work,  or 
to  interrupt  the  English  settlements  on  the  Ohio  river  and  its  trib 
utaries. 

Washington  himself  was  stationed  at  Alexandria,  to  superintend 
the  recruitment  of  the  second  company,  and  obtain  and  forward 
supplies  for  the  projected  fort.  Lord  Fairfax,  who,  as  county  lieu 
tenant,  had  authority  over  the  militia  of  his  neighborhood,  was 
active  in  promoting  the  business  in  which  his  young  friend  was 
engaged,  but  the  few  men  who  offered  to  enlist  were  for  the  most 
part  idle,  worthless,  and  destitute,  though  willing  to  clothe  them 
selves  decently  if  the  government  would  advance  a  sufficient 
amount  of  pay  for  that  purpose. 

When  the  burgesses  met,  in  February,  and  the  governor  laid 
before  them  his  plan  of  operations,  he  found  it  would  receive  but  a 
qualified  and  hesitating  support.  Some  of  them  deprecated  any 
action  in  the  matter,  on  the  ground  that  it  was  doubtful  whether 
the  king  had  really  any  just  claim  to  the  disputed  territory.  "  You 
can  well  conceive,"  the  governor  wrote  to  a  friend,  "  how  I  fired  at 


JEr.  22.]  MILITARY  BOUNTY  LANDS.  <JO 

this :  that  an  English  legislature  should  presume  to  doubt  the  right 
of  his  majesty  to  the  interior  parts  of  this  continent,  the  back  of 
his  dominions."  At  length,  after  a  protracted  debate,  while  profess 
ing  an  unwillingness  to  commit  any  acts  of  hostility  against  France, 
they  agreed  to  borrow  ten  thousand  pounds,  to  be  appropriated  "  for 
the  encouragement  and  protection  of  the  settlers  on  the  waters  of 
the  Mississippi ;"  and  they  took  care,  greatly  to  his  excellency's  irri 
tation,  since  he  held  that  by  virtue  of  his  office  he  should  have  the 
exclusive  disposal  of  all  money  raised  for  public  uses,  to  place  the 
disbursement  of  this  sum  under  the  superintendence  of  their  own 
committee.  He  complained  that  the  burgesses  were  "  in  a  repub 
lican  way  of  thinking,"  but  was  obliged  to  confess  that  he  was  un 
able  to  bring  them  "  to  order." 

The  governor  dissembled  his  ill  feeling,  and  entered  earnestly 
with  the  committee  upon  such  measures  as  were  warranted  by  these 
limited  means.  The  two  companies  already  enlisted  were  ordered 
to  be  increased  to  six,  each  of  fifty  men ;  and  to  induce  a  more 
respectable  class  of  persons  to  enter  the  service,  he  issued  a  procla 
mation  offering  two  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land  on  the  Ohio 
for  division  among  the  troops,  and  releasing  it  from  quitrents  for 
fifteen  years.  One  thousand  acres,  to  be  called  the  garrison  lands, 
were  to  be  set  apart  adjoining  the  proposed  fort,  for  the  soldiers 
doing  duty  there.  The  principal  reasons  assigned  to  the  home 
administration  for  this  grant  were,  that  the  soldiers  would  probably 
become  permanent  settlers,  and  that  it  was  better  to  secure  the 
lands  by  giving  titles  to  a  hundred  thousand  acres  than  to  suffer 
the  French  to  take  undisputed  possession  of  a  hundred  million 
acres.  The  king  approved  the  proclamation,  but  the  governor  and 
assembly  of  Pennsylvania  were  very  reasonably  displeased  at  this 
generous  disposition  of  territory  which  they  asserted  was  within  the 
limits  of  that  province.  Governor  Dinwiddie  adroitly  replied  to  an 
expostulatory  letter  of  Governor  Hamilton  on  the  subject  by  sug 
gesting  that  the  claims  of  Pennsylvania  were  at  least  doubtful,  since 
a  boundary  line  had  not  been  agreed  upon,  that  his  grant  did  not 
necessarily  imply  future  jurisdiction,  and  that  if  the  pretensions 


96'  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1751. 

now  set  up  should  be  maintained  the  quitrents  might  be  paid  to  the 
proprietary  instead  of  the  crown.  About  the  same  time  he  received 
an  encouraging  letter  from  the  earl  of  Holdernesse,  authorizing  him 
to  call  to  his  aid  two  companies  of  colonial  troops,  supported  at  the 
king's  charge  and  under  officers  with  royal  commissions,  one  of 
which  was  stationed  in  New  York  and  the  other  in  South  Carolina. 

The  entire  force  thus  brought  together  was  placed  under  the 
orders  of  Colonel  Joshua  Fry,  a  highly  respectable  English  gentle 
man,  supposed  to  be  well  acquainted  with  the  western  country, 
and  Washington  was  made  second  in  command,  with  the  rank  of 
lieutenant  colonel.  In  a  letter  to  a  relation,  who  was  a  member 
of  the  governor's  council,  he  had  written,  that  he  neither  desired 
nor  expected  the  first  place  in  the  expedition,  "for,"  he  added,  "I 
must  be  impartial  enough  to  confess,  it  is  a  charge  too  great  for  my 
youth  and  inexperience."  The  position  he  received  would  un 
doubtedly  have  been  offered  to  him  without  any  solicitation,  as 
Governor  Dinwiddie  had  conceived  a  very  high  opinion  of  his 
abilities  and  heroism. 

Since  the  proclamation  of  bounties  in  lands  the  enlistment  of 
privates  had  been  less  difficult,  but  there  wras  still  a  want  of  officers, 
several  gentlemen  who  had  been  appointed  having  declined  their 
commissions.  Washington  found  himself  almost  alone,  at  the  head 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  "  self-willed,  ungovernable"  recruits.  His 
old  instructor,  Adjutant  Muse,  had  been  made  a  captain,  and  soon 
after  a  major,  and  the  captaincy  vacated  by  his  promotion  was,  on 
Washington's  recommendation,  given  to  M.  Van  Braam. 

Anxious  to  be  usefully  employed,  in  active  service,  as  soon  as 
possible,  the  young  commander  obtained  permission  to  march  with 
the  two  companies  assembled  at  Alexandria,  in  advance  of  the 
other  troops,  to  the  frontier  ;  and,  starting  on  the  second  of  April, 
he  arrived  on  the  twentieth  at  Will's  creek,  having  been  joined  on 
the  way  by  a  detachment  under  Captain  Adam  Stephen.  The  roads 
were  extremely  bad,  and  the  absence  of  any  interest  in  the  expedi 
tion  on  the  part  of  the  people  was  illustrated  by  the  difficulties  he 
encountered  in  securing  wagons  for  the  use  of  the  quartermaster. 


JEt.  22.]  THE  SEVEN  YEARS'  WAR  COMMENCED.  97 

At  Winchester  it  became  necessary  to  enforce  the  militia  law,  which 
authorized  impressments,  though  that  law  was  not  strictly  applicable 
in  this  case,  as  it  was  doubtful  whether  the  territory  to  be  defended 
was  within  the  limits  of  Virginia.  Out  of  seventy-four  wagons 
impressed  there,"  Washington  wrote  to  Governor  Dinwiddie,  "  we 
got  but  ten,  after  waiting  a  week,  and  some  of  these  so  badly  pro 
vided  with  teams  that  the  soldiers  were  obliged  to  assist  them  up 
the  hills,  although  it  was  known  they  had  better  teams  at  home.  I 
doubt  not  that  in  some  points  I  may  have  strained  the  law,  but  I 
hope,  as  my  sole  object  was  to  expedite  the  march,  I  shall  be  sup 
ported  in  it,  should  my  authority  be  questioned,  which  at  present  I 
do  not  apprehend."  Colonel  Fry,  with  the  remainder  of  the  regi 
ment,  and  the  artillery,  was  to  follow  by  a  less  direct  but  more  con 
venient  route. 

Before  their  arrival  at  Will's  creek  a  vague  rumor  reached  the 
little  army  of  the  capture  of  Captain  Trent  and  his  company  on 
the  Ohio.  Captain  Trent  himself  however  was  found  quite  safe  at 
the  creek,  and  all  uncertainty  as  to  the  fate  of  the  men  was  ended 
two  days  afterwards  by  their  appearance,  conducted  by  Ensign  Ward, 
who  in  the  absence  of  the  captain  and  his  lieutenant  had  become 
their  first  officer.  Washington  wrote  to  Governor  Dinwiddie  that 
the  conduct  of  Trent  had  confirmed  a  common  suspicion  of  "his 
great  timidity."  The  lieutenant  was  Frazier,  the  Indian  trader,  and 
of  him  he  said,  that,  "  though  not  altogether  blameless,  he  is  much 
more  excusable,  for  he  would  not  accept  of  his  commission  until 
he  had  a  promise  from  the  captain  that  he  should  not  be  required 
to  reside  at  the  fort,  or  to  visit  it  above  once  a  week,  or  as  he  saw 
necessity." 

M.  Contrecoeur,  an  experienced  and  vigilant  soldier,  had  suc 
ceeded  M.  de  St.  Pierre  in  command  of  the  French  forces  at  Fort 
Le  Boeuf,  and  as  soon  as  the  spring  opened  had  commenced  prepar 
ations  for  carrying  out  the  plans  inferred  by  Washington  from  the 
conversation  of  his  predecessor.  Descending  the  Alleghany  river, 
from  Venango,  at  the  head  of  from  five  hundred  to  a  thousand 
men,  with  eighteen  pieces  of  artillery,  he  halted  within  a  short  dis- 

7 


98  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

tance  of  the  unfinished  fort  at  the  junction  of  the  Alleghany  with 
the  Monongahela,  and  summoned  Ensign  Ward  to  surrender,  allow 
ing  him  an  hour  to  consider  the  subject,  and  directing  him  to  deliver 
an  answer  in  writing  at  his  camp.  As  the  party  commanded  by  the 
ensign  amounted  to  but  forty-one  men,  it  was  of  course  impossible 
to  make  any  resistance ;  but  before  coming  to  a  decision  he  con 
sulted  Tanacharisson,  who  advised  him  to  inform  M.  Contrecceur 
that  he  was  only  a  subaltern,  without  authority  to  act  in  so  import 
ant  a  matter,  and  to  request  him  to  await  the  arrival  of  his  superior 
officer.  He  accordingly,  accompanied  by  the  half  king,  proceeded 
with  this  answer  to  the  enemy's  lines,  but  M.  Contrecceur  declined 
to  make  any  change  in  his  demands,  and  it  was  therefore  agreed 
that  a  capitulation  should  take  place  the  next  day,  and  that  Ensign 
Ward  should  be  permitted  to  retire  with  his  men,  carrying  their 
working  tools.  These  preliminaries  being  settled,  M.  Contrecceur 
invited  the  ensign  to  sup  with  him,  and  treated  him  with  much 
civility.  The  seizure  of  this  post  was  regarded  as  the  first  overt 
act  in  the  memorable  war  which  for  seven  years  raged  in  both 
Europe  and  America — memorable,  in  Europe,  for  the  achieve 
ments  of  Frederick  the  Great,  by  which  Prussia  was  raised  to  the 
first  rank  of  nations,  and  for  the  splendid  displays  of  political  genius 
which  enabled  Pitt  to  infuse  unprecedented  vigor  into  the  British 
councils ;  and  in  America,  for  the  entire  overthrow  of  the  French 
dominion  on  this  continent. 

The  French  immediately  began  to  complete  and  enlarge  the  works 
which  they  had  taken,  and  in  a  month  they  were  made,  under  the 
direction  of  M.  de  Mercier,*  an  accomplished  engineer,  of  sufficient 
capacity  to  receive  a  garrison  of  a  thousand  men,  and  of  sufficient 

*  The  chevalier  de  Mercier,  the  architect  of  Fort  Duquesne,  was  a  captain  in  the  artillery.  Soon 
after  the  events  here  mentioned  he  was  sent  to  France  by  the  governor  general  with  an  account  of 
the  campaign  on  the  Ohio.  His  opinion  had  great  weight  at  Versailles,  and  in  1755  he  returned 
with  Vaudreuil  and  Dieskau  to  America.  Too  much  confidence  in  his  judgment  led  Dieskau  to 
the  measures  which  ended  in  his  utter  defeat  by  Lake  George,  on  the  eighth  of  September,  1755. 
In  August,  the  following  year,  M.  de  Mercier  directed  with  eminent  ability  the  works  with  which 
M.  de  Montcalm  besieged  Oswego,  and  he  is  charged  by  M.  Pouchot,  a  contemporary  historian, 
with  secreting  for  his  own  use  a  large  share  of  the  public  property  on  the  surrender  of  that  place. 
The  next  season  he  was  the  messenger  sent  by  M.  de  Vaudreuil  to  demand  the  keys  of  Fort  Will 
iam  Henry. 


Mf.  22.]  LETTER  TO  GOVERNOR  HAMILTON.  99 

strength  to  resist  any  force  that  was  likely  to  be  brought  against 
them.  In  honor  of  the  governor  general  of  New  France  they 
received  the  name  of  Fort  Duquesne. 

Ensign  Ward  was  accompanied  to  Will's  creek  by  two  Indian 
warriors,  sent  by  Tanacharisson,  to  ascertain  the  intentions  of 
Washington  and  the  number  of  his  men.  They  conveyed  to  him 
a  message  from  the  chief.  "  Come  to  our  assistance  as  soon  as  you 
can,"  were  his  words ;  "  come  soon,  or  we  are  lost,  and  shall  never 
meet  again.  I  speak  it  in  the  grief  of  my  heart." 

The  position  of  Washington  was  eminently  critical  and  embar 
rassing.  With  but  three  small  and  undisciplined  companies  he 
occupied  an  advanced  post  on  the  frontier,  beyond  which  there  was 
no  obstacle  to  prevent  the  approach  of  the  powerful  French  force  by 
which  the  country  was  invaded,  and  which  was  reported  to  be  con 
tinually  receiving  accessions  from  the  Mississippi  and  the  St.  Law 
rence.  Colonel  Fry  had  not  yet  joined  him,  nor  had  he  any  means 
of  ascertaining,  with  certainty,  when  that  officer  would  assume  the 
command.  The  entire  responsibility  of  deciding  and  acting,  at  a 
moment  when  the  utmost  promptness  and  energy  were  necessary, 
to  insure  the  subordination  of  his  troops  and  the  confidence  and 
faithfulness  of  his  Indian  allies,  therefore  rested  on  himself.  Under 
these  circumstances,  he  sent  express  messengers  to  the  governors  of 
Virginia,  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania,  with  letters  explaining  his 
weak  and  exposed  situation  and  soliciting  reinforcements.  To  Gov 
ernor  Hamilton  of  Pennsylvania  he  wrote  :  "  I  have  arrived  thus  far 
with  a  detachment  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-nine  men.  Colonel 
Fry,  with  the  remainder  of  the  regiment  and  the  artillery,  is  daily 
expected.  In  the  meantime  we  shall  advance  slowly  across  the 
mountains,  making  the  roads,  as  we  march,  fit  for  the  carriage  of 
the  great  guns ;  and  design  to  proceed  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  Red 
stone  creek,  which  enters  the  Monongahela  about  thirty-seven 
miles  above  the  fort  the  French  have  taken,  whence  we  have  a 
water  carriage  down  the  river.  There  is  a  storehouse,  built  by  the 
Ohio  Company,  at  that  place,  which  for  the  present  may  serve  as  a 
receptable  for  our  ammunition  and  provisions.  Besides  the  French 


100  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

under  Monsieur  Contrecoeur,  we  have  credible  information  that 
another  party  are  coming  up  the  Ohio.  We  also  have  intelligence 
that  six  hundred  Chippewa  and  Ottawa  Indians  are  marching 
down  Scioto  creek  to  join  them.  I  ought  first  to  have  begged 
pardon  of  your  excellency  for  this  liberty  of  writing,  as  I  am  not 
happy  enough  to  be  ranked  among  your  acquaintance.  It  was  the 
glowing  zeal  I  owe  my  country  that  influenced  me  to  impart  these 
advices,  and  my  inclination  prompted  me  to  do  it  to  you,  as  I  know 
you  are  solicitous  for  the  public  welfare,  and  warm  in  this  inter 
esting  cause." 

In  his  letter  to  Governor  Dinwiddie  Washington  mentioned  his 
communications  to  the  chief  magistrates  of  the  other  near  prov 
inces.  "  I  considered  that  the  assembly  of  Maryland  was  to  sit  in 
five  days,"  he  wrote,  "  that  the  Pennsylvania  assembly  is  now  sitting, 
and  that,  by  giving  timely  notice,  something  might  be  done  in  favor 
of  this  expedition,  which  now  requires  all  the  force  we  can  muster." 
Governor  Dinwiddie  himself  had  written  to  the  governors  of  all 
the  provinces,  from  New  York  to  South  Carolina,  setting  forth  the 
condition  of  affairs,  and  asking  for  assistance. 

The  decision  to  advance  into  the  wilderness,  without  waiting 
for  Colonel  Fry,  was  approved  by  a  council  of  war,  and  sixty  men 
were  at  once  detached  to  commence  the  preparation  of  the  proposed 
military  road. 


J£T.  22.]  RUMORS  OF  THE  ENEMY.-- 


CHAPTER   XI. 

WASHINGTON  LEAVES  WILL'S  CREEK BUILDING  A  MILITARY  ROAD RUMORS  OP 

THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS DISCONTENTS  RESPECTING  PAY CORRESPONDENCE 

ON  THIS  SUBJECT EXPLORATION  OF  THE  YOUGHIOGANY FAMINE ALARMING 

MESSAGE   FROM   TANACHARISSON MARCH  TO  THE   GREAT   MEADOWS MORE 

RUMORS  OF  THE  ENEMY A  NIGHT  EXPEDITION JOINED  BY  TANACHARISSON 

WASHINGTON'S  FIRST  BATTLE — DEATH  OF  JUMONVILLE. 

ON  the  twenty-ninth  of  April  Washington  departed  from  Will's 
creek  with  about  one-  hundred  men.  The  volunteers  of  Captain 
Trent's  company  who  had  come  in  from  the  Ohio  under  Ensign  Ward, 
were  detached,  with  orders  to  await  the  arrival  of  Colonel  Fry.  By 
the  terms  of  their  enlistment  they  had  considered  themselves  exempt 
from  the  rigor  of  martial  law,  and  it  was  apprehended  that  the  ex 
ample  of  their  insubordination  would  have  an  injurious  effect  upon 
the  discipline  of  the  other  troops.  The  party  of  sixty  men  sent  for 
ward  to  work  upon  the  road  had  made  but  little  progress,  and  when, 
it  was  joined  by  the  main  body,  and  all  were  engaged  in  the  labor, 
two,  three  or  four  miles  a  day  were  all  that  could  be  accomplished. 
On  the  seventh  of  May  they  were  at  Little  Meadows,  but  twenty 
miles  from  Will's  creek,  and  here  they  were  detained  between  two 
and  three  days  in  building  a  bridge.  Accounts  were  continually 
received  from  traders,  driven  from  the  extreme  frontier  by  increas 
ing  dangers,  of  the  activity  of  the  French  and  Indians.  One  of 
them  reported  that  at  Mr.  Gist's  new  settlement,  beyond  Laurel 
Hill,  he  had  seen  the  French  emissary,  La  Force,  who  had  joined 
Washington  and  his  party  and  attempted  to  seduce  from  him  his 
Indian  attendants,  a  few  months  before,  between  Venango  and  Fort 
Le  Boeuf.  He  was  now  prowling  about  the  woods,  with  four  sol 
diers  at  his  heels,  on  a  specious  pretence  of  hunting  after  deserters, 


102  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

but  really  to  reconnoitre,  and  ascertain  the  force  and  movements 
of  the  English.  The  same  trader  brought  intelligence  that  the 
French  down  the  Ohio  were  sending  presents  and  invitations  to  all 
the  neighboring  tribes,  and  that  Tanacharisson,  still  faithful  in  his 
friendship,  was  coming  to  meet  Washington  at  the  head  of  fifty 
warriors. 

On  the  seventeenth  of  May  Ensign  Ward  returned  to  the  camp, 
which  was  now  on  the  banks  of  the  Youghiogany,  with  a  letter 
from  Governor  Dinwiddie,  whom  he  had  left  at  Winchester,  where 
he  was  making  arrangements  for  an  amicable  meeting  with  several 
chiefs.  In  his  answer,  written  the  next  day,  Washington  made  a 
spirited  protest  against  the  ill-judged  economy  of  the  committee 
of  the  house  of  burgesses  in  allowing  the  colonial  officers  a  smaller 
compensation*  than  was  received  in  the  regular  army.  It  was 
admitted  that  the  officers  dependent  immediately  on  the  royal 
treasury  were  obliged  to  furnish  their  own  tables,  but  their  superior 
pay  enabled  them  to  do  so  in  a  luxurious  manner,  while  the  pro 
vincials  wrere  compelled  to  do  hard  service  on  salt  provisions. 
Washington  sympathized  with  his  companions  in  resenting  this 
inferiority  of  wages.  "Nothing,"  he  wrote,  "prevents  them  from 
throwing  down  their  commissions  but  the  approaching  danger, 
wrhich  has  too  far  engaged  their  honor  for  them  to  recede  till  other 
officers  are  sent  in  their  room,  or  an  alteration  is  made  in  their  pay, 
during  which  time  they  will  assist  with  their  best  endeavors  volun 
tarily  :  that  is,  without  receiving  the  gratuity  allowed  by  the  re 
solves  of  the  committee."  He  had  no  thought  of  surrendering  his 
own  commission,  however.  "  I  have  a  constitution  hardy  enough 
to  encounter  and  undergo  the  most  severe  trials,  and,  I  flatter 
myself,  resolution  to  face  what  any  man  dares,"  he  remarked ;  "  and 
I  will  with  the  greatest  pleasure  devote  my  services  to  the  expedi 
tion,  without  any  other  reward  than  the  satisfaction  of  serving  my 

*  The  pay  of  the  colonial  forces  was  as  follows  :  to  a  colonel,  fifteen  shillings  a  day;  to  a  lieute 
nant  f-olond,  twelve  shillings  and  sixpence;  to  a  major,  ten  shillings;  a  captain,  eight  shillings;  a 
lieutenant,  four  shillings  ;  and  an  ensign,  three  hillings.  The  privates  received  eight  pence  per 
da}r,  and  a  pistole  bounty,  and  half  a  pint  of  rum  was  allowed  each  man.  The  uniform  was  a  red 
coat  and  breeches. — See  Dinvviddie's  Letter,  in  Pennsylvania  Colonial  Kecords,  vi.  6, 


>Er.  22.]  EXCURSION  DOWN  THE  YOUGHIOGAN Y.  103 

country ;  but  to  be  slaving  dangerously  for  only  the  shadow  of  pay, 
through  the  woods,  rocks,  mountains  —  I  would  rather  dig  for  a 
maintenance,  provided  I  were  reduced  to  the  necessity,  than  serve 
upon  such  ignoble  terms ;  for  I  really  do  not  see  why  the  lives  of  his 
majesty's  subjects  in  Virginia  should  be  of  less  value  than  those  of 
his  subjects  in  other  parts  of  his  American  dominions,  especially 
when  it  is  well  known  that  we  must  undergo  double  their  hard 
ships."  Although  it  was  the  indignity  involved  in  the  proposition 
of  the  government  that  induced  this  manifestation  of  feeling,  he 
took  care  to  set  before  the  governor  the  absolute  injustice  of  the 
pay  which  was  offered.  "  Now,"  he  wrote,  "  if  we  could  be  fortunate 
enough  to  drive  the  French  from  the  Ohio,  as  far  as  your  honor 
would  please  to  have  them  sent,  in  any  short  time,  our  pay  will  not 
be  sufficient  to  discharge  our  first  expenses.  I  would  not  have  you 
imagine  from  this  that  I  have  said  ah1  these  things  to  have  our  pay 
increased,  but  to  justify  myself,  and  to  show  you  that  our  complaints 
are  not  frivolous,  but  founded  in  strict  reason."  "  The  motives  which 
have  led  me  here,"  he  added,  "  are  pure  and  noble  :  I  had  no  view 
of  acquisition,  but  that  of  honor,  by  serving  my  king  and  country ;" 
and  in  conclusion :  "  Be  the  consequences  what  they  will,  I  am  de 
termined  not  to  leave  the  regiment,  but  to  be  among  the  last  men 
who  quit  the  Ohio,  even  if  I  serve  as  a  private  volunteer,  which  I 
greatly  prefer  to  the  establishment  we  are  now  upon."  Serious 
distress  and  growing  discontents  were  at  the  same  time  prevailing 
in  consequence  of  a  failure  of  provisions,  caused  by  the  neglect  of 
the  commissaries  to  fulfil  their  contracts. 

The  water  in  the  Youghiogany  was  so  high  that  it  was  impossible 
for  the  troops  to  cross  that  river,  and  the  same  cause  secured  them 
from  any  attack  by  the  enemy.  Assured  by  Indians  and  traders 
that  he  could  descend  this  stream  in  boats,  and  that  increasing 
difficulties  would  discourage  his  attempt  to  open  a  wagon  road  to 
Redstone  creek,  Washington,  on  the  twentieth,  confided  the  chief 
military  command  to  a  subordinate  officer,  and,  embarking  in  a 
canoe,  with  a  lieutenant,  three  privates,  and  an  Indian  guide,  pro 
ceeded  down  the  river  nearly  thirty  miles,  encountering  shoals, 


104  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

rapids,  fallen  trees,  and  other  obstacles,  until,  having  passed  between 
two  mountains,  he  came  to  a  fall  that  rendered  any  further  advance 
impracticable.  He  therefore  returned. 

On  the  twenty-third  he  received  a  message  from  Tanacharisson 
warning  him  to  be  on  his  guard,  as  a  portion  of  the  French  army 
had  been  two  days  on  the  march  toward  him,  determined  to  attack 
the  first  English  they  should  meet.  In  the  evening  this  account 
wras  confirmed  by  another,  that  the  French  were  at  a  crossing  of  the 
Youghiogany  about  eighteen  miles  distant.  He  proceeded  immedi 
ately  to  a  place  called  the  Great  Meadows,  where  he  cleared  away 
the  bushes,  threw  up  a  slight  fortification,  and  prepared  what  he  de 
scribed  as  "  a  charming  field  for  an  encounter."  Upon  his  arrival 
there  several  men  were  sent  out  on  the  wagon  horses  to  recon 
noitre,  but  they  came  back,  on  the  twenty-sixth,  without  having 
seen  anything  of  the  enemy.  The  night  after  their  departure 
an  alarm  was  given,  about  two  o'clock,  and  the  soldiers  were  kept 
under  arms  until  near  sunrise,  when  it  was  found  that  six  men  had 
deserted.  Their  movements  had  probably  attracted  the  attention 
of  the  sentinels. 

Early  on  the  twenty-seventh  Mr.  Gist  came  into  the  camp  with 
intelligence  that  M.  La  Force  had  been  at  his  place,  thirteen  miles 
away,  the  previous  day  at  noon,  at  the  head  of  fifty  men, 
whose  trail  he  had  observed  within  five  miles.  Seventy-five  men 
were  detached  under  Captain  Adam  Stephen  to  find  and  bring 
them  to  an  engagement  if  possible,  and  the  best  preparations 
which  circumstances  permitted  were  made  for  their  reception  at 
Great  Meadows.  At  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening  a  messenger  ar 
rived  from  Tanacharisson,  who  was  with  a  party  of  his  warriors 
about  six  miles  off,  stating  that  he  had  seen  the  tracks  of  two 
Frenchmen,  and  that  the  whole  force  was  near  him. 

Before  an  hour  had  elapsed  Washington  placed  himself  at  the 
head  of  forty  men,  and  set  off  to  join  his  Indian  allies.  The  night 
was  extremely  dark,  the  rain  fell  fast  and  heavily,  and  the  path 
through  the  woods  was  so  narrow  and  intricate  as  to  be  frequently 
missed,  and  found  only  with  great  difficulty,  by  groping  among 


,ET.  22.]  DEATH  OF  JUMONVILLE.  105 

bushes,  and  fallen  trees,  and  rocks.     The  tents  of  the  Indians  were 
not  reached  until  after  day  light. 

A  conversation  was  held  with  the  half  king  and  his  chiefs,  which 
resulted  in  their  agreement  to  join  without  any  delay  in  the 
search  after  the  French.  Tanacharisson,  Monacatoocha,  and  a  few 
others,  accordingly  proceeded  with  the  English,  and  when  they 
came  to  the  place  where  footprints  had  been  discovered,  two  of 
them  were  despatched  to  ascertain  whither  they  led.  They  soon 
returned,  with  information  that  the  enemy  was  in  an  obscure  re 
treat,  surrounded  with  rocks  and  trees,  half  a  mile  from  the  road. 
A  plan  of  attack  was  quickly  formed  ;  approaching  the  hiding  place 
of  the  French  in  two  parties,  the  English  and  Indians  nearly  sur 
rounded  it ;  and  when  Washington,  at  the  head  of  his  men,  march 
ing  in  single  file,  came  so  near  as  to  be  seen,  the  French  instantly 
seized  their  arms,  put  themselves  in  an  attitude  of  defence,  and 
firing  commenced  on  both  sides,  though  the  guns  and  ammunition 
of  the  English  were  so  w^et  that  they  were  compelled  to  rely  chiefly 
on  the  use  of  the  bayonet.  The  engagement  lasted  about  fifteen 
minutes,  when  the  French  surrendered.  Ten  of  their  number  had 
been  killed,  one  escaped  to  carry  news  of  the  disaster  to  M.  Con- 
trecoeur,  and  twenty-two  were  taken  prisoners.  Among  the  killed 
was  M.  Jumonville,  and  one  of  the  prisoners  was  La  Force.  Of  the 
English  one  was  killed  and  two  or  three  were  wounded.* 

*  Horace  Walpole,  in  his  Memoirs  of  George  the  Second,  says,  "In  the  express  which  Major 
Washington  despatched  on  his  preceding  little  victory  (the  skirmish  with  Jumonville),  he  concluded 
with  these  words  :  '  I  heard  the  bullets  whistle,  and,  believe  me,  there  is  something  charming  in  the 
sound.'  On  hearing  this  the  king  said,  sensibly,  '  He  would  not  say  so  if  he  had  been  used  to  hear 
many.'  However,  this  brave  braggart  learned  to  blush  for  his  rhodomontade,  and,  desiring  to  serve 
General  Braddock  as  his  aid-de-camp,  acquitted  himself  nobly." 

Mr.  Sparks,  quoting  the  above  paragraph,  remarks  that  in  Washington's  despatch  giving  an  ac 
count  of  the  encounter  with  Jumonville's  party  there  is  "nothing  about  the  whistling  of  bullets,  nor  is 
such  a  sentiment  uttered  in  any  of  his  letters  which  have  been  preserved  ;"  and  that  "  as  the  writer  refers 
to  no  authority,  it  may  be  presumed  that  he  had  none  but  rumor,  for  either  the  saying  of  Washington 
or  the  more  sensible  reply  of  the  king."  But  Mr.  Irving  has  discovered  Walpole's  authority,  in  a 
letter  from  Washington  to  one  of  his  brothers,  which  by  some  means  found  its  way,  not  long  after  it 
was  written,  into  the  London  Magazine  for  1754.  Before  Walpole's  work  came  out,  however,  the 
story  had  been  printed  by  Gordon,  who  says  in  his  History  (ii.  203)  :  "  A  gentleman,  who  had  heard 
the  reverend  Mr.  Davies  relate  that  Colonel  Washington  had  mentioned,  'he  knew  of  no  music  so 
pleasing  as  the  whistling  of  bullets,'  being  alone  with  him  in  conversation  at  Cambridge,  asked  him 
whether  it  was  as  he  related.  The  general  answered,  '  If  I  said  so,  it  was  when  I  was  young.' " 
The  witty  earl  was  mistaken  in  saying  that  Washington  desired  to  serve  Braddock  as  aid-de-camp  : 
it  was  at  Braddock's  solicitation  that  he  attended  him  in  that  capacity. 


106  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

It  is  said  that  Washington,  on  giving  the  order  to  fire,  set  an  ex 
ample  with  his  own  musket,  and  Mr.  Bancroft,  referring  to  the  scene, 
says,  "  That  word  of  command  kindled  the  world  into  a  flame ;  it 
was  the  signal  for  the  first  great  revolution ;  there,  in  the  western 
forest,  began  the  battle  which  was  to  banish  from  the  soil  and 
neighborhood  of  our  republic  the  institutions  of  the  middle  age, 
and  to  inflict  on  them  fatal  wounds  throughout  the  continent  of 
Europe.  In  repelling  France  from  the  basin  of  the  Ohio  Wash 
ington  broke  the  repose  of  mankind,  and  waked  a  struggle,  which 
could  admit  only  of  a  truce,  until  the  ancient  bulwarks  of  catholic 
legitimacy  w^ere  thrown  down."* 

The  elevation  of  Washington's  character  and  the  integrity  of  his 
conduct  were  all  through  his  life  so  conspicuous  as  to  save  his  repu 
tation  in  a  very  remarkable  degree  from  the  assaults  of  calumny ; 
but  this  affair  of  the  death  of  M.  Jumonville  has  from  the  beginning 
been  scandalously  misrepresented  by  many  French  and  by  some 
other  writers,  with  a  view  to  show  that  the  first  blood  ever  shed  by 
Washington's  orders  was  shed  in  violation  of  the  laws  and  usages 
of  war.  Truth  justifies  no  such  conclusion. 

The  rencounter  took  place  just  after  seven  o'clock  on  the  morn 
ing  of  the  twenty-eighth  of  May.  On  the  following  day  Washing 
ton  wrrote  a  particular  account  of  it  to  Governor  Dinwiddie,  at 
Winchester,  which  he  sent  by  the  officer  in  command  of  the  guard 
despatched  at  the  same  time  with  the  prisoners.  The  most  impor 
tant  of  these  were  M.  Drouillon,  and  the  M.  La  Force  whom  he  had 
previously  known,  and  had  described  to  the  governor  as  "  a  bold, 
enterprising  man,  of  great  subtlety  and  cunning."  They  claimed  to 
be  set  at  liberty,  on  the  absurd  pretext  that  they  had  been  captured 
while  under  the  sacred  protection  of  an  embassage.  It  needed  little 
penetration  to  discover  that  they  were  really  spies,  and  far  more 
justly  entitled  to  the  halter  than  to  the  leniency  Washington  ex 
hibited  in  considering  them  prisoners  of  war. 

It  is  true  that  war  had  not  yet  been  formally  declared  by  either 
Great  Britain  or  France  ;  yet  Governor  Dinwiddie,  specially  in- 

*  History  of  the  United  States,  iv.  11& 


&T.  22.]  JUMONVJLLE'S  INSTRUCTIONS.  107 

structed  to  do  so  by  the  English  ministers,  had  protested  against  the 
occupation  of  the  Ohio  by  the  French,  as  an  invasion  of  British  ter 
ritory  ;  and,  knowing  this,  the  governor  general  of  Canada,  instead 
of  referring  the  subject  to  his  superiors  and  awaiting  their  farther 
orders,  had  directed  still  other  advances  into  the  disputed  region, 
and  had  already  taken  forcible  possession  of  a  fort  which  was  being 
erected  there  by  the  English.  Doubtless  the  instructions  of  M. 
Duquesne  were  as  distinct  and  imperative  as  those  given  to  Mr. 
Dinwiddie,  and  both  governors  were  enjoined  to  appeal  to  the  sword 
in  support  of  the  pretensions  of  their  sovereigns.  War  therefore 
did  actually  exist  by  the  action  of  the  highest  authorities  recognised 
by  either  party.  Besides,  it  was  known  that  this  detachment,  so  im 
pudently  called  an  embassy,  had  been  stealthily  wandering  through 
the  country  for  several  days,  endeavoring  to  estrange  the  Indians 
in  the  British  interest,  and  gaining  all  the  information  they  could 
as  to  the  strength  and  purposes  of  the  force  sent  from  Virginia. 

M.  Contrecceur,  repeating  what  was  told  him  by  the  Canadian  sol 
dier  who  escaped,  wrote  to  M.  Duquesne  that  on  discovering  the  ap 
proach  of  Washington  M.  Jumonville  instantly  ordered  the  reading 
of  a  communication  of  which  he  was  the  bearer,  and  that  he  was 
shot  down  while  his  interpreter  was  performing  this  duty.  Some 
of  the  prisoners  afterward  declared  that  the  French  called  out  to 
the  English  with  the  design  to  make  known  that  their  mission  had 
a  peaceful  object.  But  evidently  these  are  fictions.  Neither  the 
French  who  were  taken,  nor  the  English  or  Indians,  observed  any 
attempt  to  read  a  paper ;  and  Washington,  who  was  at  the  head  of 
his  men,  and  the  first  person  seen  by  the  French,  wrote  to  Gov 
ernor  Dinwiddie  that  he  believed  it  impossible  that  any  such  call 
should  have  been  made  without  his  hearing  it,  which  was  not  the 
case,  but  on  the  contrary  he  "  saw  them  run  to  their  arms,  and  im 
mediately  commence  firing." 

On  the  person  of  Jumonville  were  found  papers  which  fully  justi 
fied  the  most  unfavorable  impression  as  to  his  purposes.  From  a 
letter  of  instructions  it  appeared  that  he  was  to  inform  himself  of 
the  roads,  creeks,  and  other  features  of  the  country,  as  far  as  the 


108  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

Potomac;  to  send  back  from  time  to  time  all  the  information  he 
could  obtain,  and  to  give  notice  of  the  day  on  which  he  expected 
to  serve  an  accompanying  summons  upon  the  commander  of  the 
English  troops.  This  summons  was  a  mere  parody  of  the  message 
conveyed  by  Washington  to  M.  de  St.  Pierre :  it  warned  the  Eng 
lish  to  retreat  beyond  the  Alleghanies,  and  threatened  compulsory 
measures  if  it  should  not  be  obeyed.  Jumonville  probably  did  not 
intend  to  make  any  use  of  it,  except  in  the  event  of  his  capture. 

After  suggesting  that  thirty-six  men  would  have  been  a  retinue 
for  a  princely  ambassador,  instead  of  one  of  so  mean  rank,  Washing 
ton  remarks :  "  Why  did  they,  if  their  designs  were  open,  stay  so  long 
within  five  miles  of  us,  without  delivering  their  message  or  acquaint 
ing  me  with  it  ?  Their  waiting  could  be  with  no  other  design  than 
to  get  detachments  to  enforce  the  summons  as  soon  as  it  was  given. 
They  had  no  occasion  to  send  out  spies,  for  the  name  of  an  ambas 
sador  is  sacred  among  all  nations ;  but  it  was  by  the  tracks  of  their 
spies  that  they  were  discovered,  and  that  we  got  intelligence  of 
them.  They  would  not  have  retired  two  miles  back  without  deliv 
ering  the  summons,  and  sought  a  skulking-place,  but  for  some  spe 
cial  reason." 

In  another  letter  to  the  governor,  respecting  the  prisoners,  he 
wrote  :  "  I  have  still  stronger  presumption,  indeed  almost  confirma 
tion,  that  they  were  sent  as  spies....  I  doubt  not  but  they  will 
endeavor  to  amuse  you  with  many  smooth  stories,  as  they  did  me ; 
but  they  were  confuted  in  them  all,  and,  by  circumstances  too  plain 
to  be  denied,  almost  made  ashamed  of  their  assertions." 

M.  Thomas,  a  French  poet  of  considerable  reputation,  and  a  mem 
ber  of  the  Academy,  published  on  this  subject  in  1759  a  tragic 
poem  in  four  cantos,  under  the  title  of  "  Jumonville,"  in  which  he 
attempts  to  dignify  his  hero,  to  paint  the  circumstances  of  his  death 
in  the  darkest  colors,  and  to  trace  the  subsequent  misfortunes  of 
the  English  to  the  retributive  justice  of  Heaven. 

The  conduct  of  Washington  has  been  vindicated  by  Mr.  Sparks, 
elaborately  and  with  marked  ability,  in  notes  to  the  first  volume  of 
his  edition  of  Washington's  Writings. 


JET.  22.]  FORT  NECESSITY.  109 


CHAPTEE   XII. 

DANGEROUS    SITUATION    OF    WASHINGTON- — FORT    NECESSITY  —  LETTER     TO     GOV 
ERNOR  DINWIDDIE INDIAN  ALLIES COUNCIL  OF  WAR  AT  FORT    DUQUESNE 

DEATH  OF  COLONEL  FRY WASHINGTON  BECOMES  COMMANDER   OF  THE  EXPEDI 
TION REINFORCEMENTS COLONEL     INNES CAPTAIN    MACKY DIFFICULTIES 

CONCERNING  RANK PRAYERS  IN  THE  CAMP ADVANCE  TO    GIST'S  SETTLEMENT 

DISCOURAGING  RUMORS RETREAT  TO  FORT  NECESSITY DESERTION  BY  THE 

INDIANS THE    FORT    ATTACKED CAPITULATION VAN    BRAAM    AS    AN    INTER 
PRETER VAN    BRAAM    AND     STOBO    HOSTAGES RETURN    OF    THE     TROOPS     TO 

WILLIAMSBURG THANKED    BY    THE    HOUSE    OF   BURGESSES WASHINGTON    RE 
SIGNS    HIS    COMMISSION. 

ON  returning  to  the  encampment  at  Great  Meadows,  Washington 
perfectly  understood  the  imminent  danger  to  which  he  was  exposed, 
of  an  attack  from  the  main  body  of  the  French  troops,  consisting, 
it  was  believed,  of  nearly  a  thousand  men,  besides  Indian  allies, 
with  continual  additions  of  reinforcements.  Whether  the  person 
who  had  escaped  the  previous  day's  encounter  had  reached  Fort 
Duquesne  or  failed  to  do  so,  M.  Contrecoeur  could  not  long  remain 
in  ignorance  of  the  catastrophe  which  had  overtaken  his  corps  of 
observation ;  and  as  the  messengers  sent  by  Jumonville  on  the 
twenty-seventh  must  have  informed  him  of  the  weakness  of  the 
English,  it  was  natural  to  suppose  that  he  would  at  once  adopt 
effective  measures  of  retaliation. 

The  small  stockade  erected  at  Great  Meadows,  for  the  purpose 
of  securing  the  provisions  and  horses,  was  enlarged,  strengthened, 
nearly  surrounded  with  entrenchments,  and  significantly  named 
Fort  Necessity.  On  the  twenty-ninth  Washington  wrote  to  Colonel 
Fry,  who  was  sick  at  Will's  creek,  that  if  assistance  should  not  be 
received,  he  must  either  quit  his  ground,  or  fight  very  unequal 
numbers,  and  that  he  would  choose  the  last  alternative  rather  than 


110  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  L1754. 

give  up  an  inch  of  what  he  had  gained.  To  Governor  Dinwiddie 
he  wrote  the  same  day :  "  I  shall  expect  every  hour  to  be  attacked, 
and  by  unequal  numbers,  which  I  must  withstand,  if  there  are  five 
to  one,  for  I  fear  the  consequence  will  be  that  we  shall  lose  the 
Indians  if  we  suffer  ourselves  to  be  driven  back....  I  will  not  be 
surprised,  let  them  come  at  what  hour  they  will,  and  this  is  as  much 
as  I  can  promise ;  but  my  best  endeavors  shall  not  be  wanting  to 
effect  more.  I  doubt  not,  if  you  hear  I  am  beaten,  you  will  hear 
at  the  same  time  that  we  have  done  our  duty  in  fighting  as  long  as 
there  is  a  shadow  of  hope." 

A  few  days  spent  in  active  preparation  for  anticipated  dangers 
abated  in  a  degree  the  excitement  of  the  young  commander,  and  on 
the  third  of  June  he  addressed  to  the  governor  a  letter*  in  which  his 
circumstances  and  feelings  are  presented  in  an  interesting  manner. 

"  The  half  king,"  he  writes,  "  with  about  twenty-five  families,  con 
taining  nearly  eighty  persons,  including  women  and  children,  arrived 
here  last  night.  He  has  given  me  some  account  of  the  Twigtwees,^ 
Wyandots,  and  several  other  nations  of  Indians,  which  I  have  trans 
mitted  to  your  honor  by  an  express,  as  you  inquired  circumstan 
tially,  in  your  last,  and  I  was  then  unable  to  give  any  account  at 
all  of  them.  The  French,  early  in  the  spring,  sent  a  speech  to  the 
Wyandots,  Twigtwees,  and  their  allies,  and  desired  them  to  take 
up  the  hatchet  and  start  for  the  Ohio,  and  to  cut  off  the  inhabit 
ants,  with  all  the  English,  thereon.  This,  Big  Kettle  acquainted  the 
half  king  with ;  and  at  the  same  time  assured  him  of  their  good 
intentions  of  assisting  the  Six  Nations  and  their  brothers  the  Eng- 

*  This  letter  appears  to  have  escaped  the  researches  of  Mr.  Sparks,  Mr.  Irving,  and  other 
biographers. 

t  This  account  of  the  Twigtwees  has  not  heen  discovered  among  the  Washington  MSS.  or  the 
colonial  papers  of  Virginia.  Mr.  Gist,  who  visited  them  in  1751,  writes  of  them  as  follows  :  "The 
Twigtwees  are  a  very  numerous  people,  consisting  of  many  different  tribes  under  the  same  form  of 
government.  Each  tribe  has  a  particular  chief,  or  king,  one  of  whom  is  chosen  indifferently  out  of 
any  tribe  to  rule  the  whole  nation,  and  is  vested  with  greater  authority  than  any  of  the  others. 
They  are  accounted  the  most  powerful  nation  to  the  westward  of  the  English  settlements,  and  much 
superior  to  the  Six  Nations,  with  whom  they  are  now  in  amity.  They  formerly  lived  on  the  farther 
side  of  the  Wabash,  and  were  in  the  French  interest.  They  have  now  revolted  from  them,  and  have 
left  their  former  habitations  for  the  sake  of  trading  with  the  English."  The  French  wrote  the  name 
Tuigtuis.  Mr.  Wynne  is  referred  to  by  Mr.  Sparks  as  believing  the  Twigtwees  to  have  been  the 
same  as  the  Ottawas. 


MT.  22.]  LETTER  TO  GOVERNOR  DINWIDDIE.  Ill 

lish  against  the  French,  and  that  they  only  waited  to  see  ns  begin. 
I  have  enclosed  the  speech  of  the  chiefs,  to  which  was  added  another 
from  the  warriors,  informing  me  that  they  were  busy  in  counseling 
with  the  Chippewas,  Ottawas,  and  others,  and  striving  to  bring  all 
into  the  same  mind  with  themselves.  They  desire  the  Six  Nations, 
Virginians,  and  Pennsylvanians,  not  to  doubt  but  that  they  shall 
accomplish  their  designs  in  this,  and  when  they  do,  they  will  send 
word  thereof. 

"  Monacatoocha  was  sent  by  the  half  king  about  five  nights  ago 
to  Logstown,  with  four  French  scalps,  two  of  which  were  to  be  sent 
to  the  Wyandots,  and  the  other  two  to  the  Six  Nations,  telling  them 
that  the  French  had  tricked  them  out  of  their  lands,  for  which,  with 
their  brothers  the  English,  who  joined  hand  in  hand,  they  had  let 
them  feel  the  weight  of  their  hatchet,  which  was  but  trifling  yet,  as 
it  only  laid  on  thirty,  for  that  they  intended  with  their  brothers  to 
drive  the  French  beyond  the  lakes.  Monacatoocha  has  orders  to 
draw  all  the  Indians  from  the  Ohio,  and  then  repair  to  our  camp. 

"  I  proposed  to  the  half  king  sending  their  women  and  children 
in  to  the  inhabitants,  for,  as  they  must  be  supported  by  us,  it  may 
be  done  at  less  expense  there  than  here ;  besides  this,  there  may 
another  good  attend  it :  their  children  may  imbibe  the  principles  of 
love  and  friendship  in  a  stronger  degree,  which,  if  taken  when 
young,  are  generally  more  firm  and  lasting.  He  told  me  he  would 
consider  of  it,  and  give  answer  when  Monacatoocha  arrived.  I 
hope  this  will  be  agreeable  to  your  honor,  whom  I  wrote  to  before 
on  this  head,  without  receiving  an  answer.  We  find  it  very  difficult 
procuring  provisions  for  them,  as  they  eat  equally  with  our  own 
men,  which  is  unavoidable  without  turning  them  adrift  entirely. 

"  Mr.  Montour*  would  be  of  singular  use  to  me  here  at  this  pres 
ent,  in  conversing  with  the  Indians,  for  I  have  no  persons  that  I  can 
put  any  dependence  in.  I  make  use  of  all  the  influence  I  can  to 
engage  them  warmly  on  our  side,  and  flatter  myself  that  I  am  not 
unsuccessful,  but  for  want  of  a  better  acquaintance  with  their  cus- 

*  Montour  was  a  Canadian,  of  Indian  extraction,  and  employed  in  the  Indian  trade  when  engaged 
by  the  English  as  an  interpreter.     He  was  supposed  to  have  much  influence  with  the  Iroquois. 


112  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

toms  I  am  often  at  a  loss  how  to  behave,  and  should  be  relieved 
from  many  anxious  fears  of  offending  them  if  Montour  were  here  to 
assist  me ;  and,  as  he  is  in  the  government's  employment,  I  hope 
your  honor  will  think  with  me  that  his  services  cannot  be  applied 
to  so  great  advantage  elsewhere  as  here  upon  this  occasion. 

"  There  were  three  French  deserters  (one  an  Englishman)  met  a 
few  days  ago  at  Loyal  Henning,  going  to  Virginia,  by  one  Crawford, 
a  man  of  veracity,  who  was  assured  by  them  that  there  were  two 
Maryland  traders  confined  in  irons  at  the  fort  when  Monsieur  Ju- 
monville  was  detached ;  and,  at  the  same  time  that  he  departed  for 
this,  another  party  of  fifty  was  sent  down  the  Ohio  to  kill  or  take 
prisoners  all  the  English  they  should  meet  with.  They  assure  as 
that  Jumonville  had  all  chosen  men  fixed  upon  for  this  enterprise ; 
they  likewise  confirm  the  report  the  prisoners  gave,  that  eleven 
hundred  men  are  now  in  the  fort,  and  reinforcements  expected. 

"If  the  whole  detachment  of  the  French  behave  with  no  more 
resolution  than  this  chosen  party  did,  I  flatter  myself  we  shall  have 
no  great  trouble  in  driving  them  to  the  devil  or  Montreal.  Though 
I  took  forty  men  under  my  command  when  I  marched  out,  yet  the 
darkness  of  the  night  was  so  great  that,  by  wandering  a  little  from 
the  main  body,  seven  were  lost,  and  but  thirty-three  engaged. 
There  were  also  but  seven  Indians  with  arms,  two  of  whom  were 
boys :  one,  Dinwiddie,  your  honor's  godson,  who  behaved  well  in 
action.  There  were  five  or  six  other  Indians,  who  served  to  knock 
the  poor  unhappy  wounded  in  the  head  and  bereave  them  of  their 
scalps.  So  that  we  had  but  forty  men,  with  which  force  we  tried 
and  took  thirty-two  or  thirty-three,  besides  others  who  may  have 
escaped.  One,  we  have  certain  account,  did. 

"  We  have  just  finished  a  small  palisaded  fort,  in  which,  with  my 
small  numbers,  I  shall  not  fear  the  attack  of  five  hundred  men. 

"There  are  three  separate  strings  of  wampum  which  the  half 
king  has  desired  me  to  send :  one  is  from  the  Wyandot  chiefs,  to 
confirm  what  they  said ;  another  from  the  warriors,  to  confirm  their 
speech;  and  the  other  (white)  is  from  Monacatoocha ;  and  since 
writing  the  above  there  have  arrived  two  Indians  from  the  Musk- 


JEr.  22.]          COUNSELS  AT  FORT  DUQUESNE.  113 

ingum,  who  inform  me  that  the  Wyandots,  &c.,  are  ready  to  strike  so 
soon  as  they  hear  the  Six  Nations  and  English  have." 

Tanacharisson  appeared  to  enter  heartily  into  the  purposes  of 
Washington.  With  the  scalps  of  the  slain  Frenchmen  he  sent  black 
wampum  and  hatchets  to  his  allies,  assuring  them  that  their  brothers 
the  English,  had  "  now  begun  in  earnest."  The  camp  was  thronged 
with  Indians,  among  whom  were  Queen  Aliquippa  and  her  son,  and 
many  other  chiefs,  besides  the  half  king  and  his  retainers.  Their 
services,  however,  were  but  an  inadequate  compensation  for  the 
trouble  of  managing  them,  and  the  cost  of  their  support, 

The  suspicions  of  Washington  as  to  the  effect  which  intelligence 
of  the  recent  engagement  would  produce  at  Fort  Duquesne  were 
entirely  correct.  A  council  of  war  was  summoned  as  soon  as  the 
single  fugitive  from  the  scene  of  disaster  had  told  his  story,  false  in 
almost  everything  except  that  his  companions  had  been  surprised, 
killed,  or  captured.  In  this  council  the  opinions  of  all  the  officers 
present  were  submitted  in  writing.  Coulon  de  Villiers,  a  brother 
of  Jumonville,  fiery  and  brutal,  and  widely  known,  for  the  prowess 
he  had  displayed  in  border  and  savage  warfare,  as  Le  Grand  Viltiers, 
was  for  prompt  and  vengeful  action;  but  M.  de  Mercier  advised 
moderation :  in  his  opinion  it  was  not  expedient  to  do  anything  which 
could  be  construed  into  a  violation  of  the  letter  of  the  treaty  of 
Utrecht,  though  he  and  every  member  of  the  council  must  have 
known  that  the  spirit  of  that  treaty  was  outraged  by  even  their 
presence  in  the  valley  of  the  Ohio.  M.  Contrecoeur  appreciated  the 
policy  of  preserving  as  far  as  possible  the  appearances  of  peace,  and 
adopted  M.  de  Mercier's  views.  It  was  decided  therefore  that  M.  de 
Villiers  should  be  despatched  with  about  six  hundred  men  to  meet 
the  English,  and  that  M.  de  Mercier  should  accompany  him  as  sec 
ond  in  command. 

Washington  had  scarcely  completed  his  last  despatches  to  Gov 
ernor  Dinwiddie  respecting  the  affair  of  Jumonville  when  he  heard 
that  Colonel  Fry  had  died  suddenly  at  Will's  creek.  By  this  event 
the  chief  command  devolved  on  himself.  Major  Muse  came  in  on 
the  ninth  of  June  with  the  recruits,  by  whom  the  little  arrny  at 


114  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

Great  Meadows  was  increased  to  about  three  hundred  men.  He 
was  accompanied  by  Dr.  James  Craik,  a  surgeon,  born  and  educated 
in  Scotland,  who  from  this  period  until  the  last  moment  of  Wash 
ington's  life  was  one  of  his  most  intimate  and  trusted  friends ;  and  by 
Montour,  the  Indian  interpreter,  whose  presence  enabled  the  com 
mander  with  ease  and  effect  to  go  through  the  ceremonial  of  present 
ing  a  belt  of  wampum  which  the  governor  had  sent  to  Tanacharisson, 
with  medals  to  all  the  chiefs,  and  various  gifts  of  merchandise  to 
the  other  friendly  Indians.  The  death  of  Colonel  Fry*  rendered 
necessary  a  reorganization  of  the  regiment,  and  he  gave  to  Captain 
Adam  Stephen,  who  had  displayed  unusual  judgment  and  intre 
pidity,  a  major's  commission,  which  he  found  in  blank  among  the 
papers  of  the  deceased  officer,  and  recommended  acting  captain 
Van  Braam  and  others  for  promotion. 

Almost  every  hour  brought  some  excitement  or  surprise.  Soon 
after  the  arrival  of  this  reinforcement  wrord  was  received  that  a 
party  of  the  enemy  was  approaching;  it  was  understood  that  it 
amounted  to  ninety  men ;  and  Washington  marched  out  at  the  head 
of  one  hundred  and  thirty  of  his  best  soldiers,  "  with  the  hope  of 
procuring  another  present  of  French  prisoners"  for  the  governor, 
but  "was  as  much  disappointed  as  ever  in  his  life"  when  he  found 
that  he  had  mistaken  ninety  for  nine,  and  that  these  were  deserters 
seeking  protection. 

On  the  tenth  the  independent  company  from  South  Carolina, 
consisting  of  one  hundred,  which  had  been  for  some  time  expected, 
arrived  at  the  fort,  and,  about  the  same  time,  intelligence  was  re 
ceived  that  Colonel  Irmes,  of  North  Carolina,  was  approaching  with 
a  force  of  three  hundred.  Governor  Dinwiddie  had  appointed  this 
officer  to  the  head  of  the  expedition,  but  had  confirmed  Washington 
in  the  command  of  the  Virginia  regiment.  The  selection  of  limes 

*  Joshua  Fry  was  a  native  of  England,  and  was  educated  at  the  university  of  Oxford.  Soon 
after  coming  to  Virginia  he  became  professor  of  mathematics  in  the  college  of  William  and  Mary, 
and,  resigning  this  place,  was  elected  a  member  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  and  otherwise  employed 
in  public  services,  chiefly  as  a  surveyor  of  the  boundaries  of  the  colony,  and  as  a  negotiator  with 
the  Indians.  In  an  obituary  notice  it  is  remarked  of  him  that  "  he  was  of  so  clear  a  head,  so  mild 
a  temper,  and  so  good  a  heart,  that  he  never  failed  to  engage  the  love  and  esteem  of  all  who  knew 
or  were  concerned  with  him."  He  died  on  the  thirty-first  of  May. 


MT.  22.]  DIFFICULTIES  RESPECTING  RANK.  115 

gave  little  satisfaction.  He  was  a  Scotchman,  and  it  was  thought 
the  governor  had  evinced  an  undue  partiality  for  a  countryman. 
Besides,  he  was  from  another  province,  and  so  not  entitled  to  the 
leadership  of  an  enterprise  undertaken  and  mainly  prosecuted  by 
Virginia.  Washington,  however,  who  knew  his  good  reputation, 
and  had  agreeable  recollections  of  him  as  one  of  the  gentlemen  who 
had  served  with  his  brother  Lawrence  in  the  West  Indies,  expressed 
the  pleasure  he  felt  that  he  was  e(  likely  to  be  under  the  orders  of 
an  experienced  officer  and  man  of  sense."  Neither  Colonel  Innes 
nor  his  troops,  however,  advanced  beyond  Winchester.  The  com 
pany  summoned  from  New  York  landed  at  Alexandria,  and  set  out 
for  the  interior,  but  did  not  reach  the  Virginia  camp  until  it  was 
too  late  for  them  to  be  of  any  advantage. 

Washington  had  anticipated  difficulties  respecting  rank  and  prece 
dence  with  the  captains  of  the  independent  companies.  On  other 
occasions  gentlemen  holding  royal  commissions  had  refused  to  be 
commanded  by  provincial  officers,  and  on  being  advised  of  the 
approach  of  Captain  Mackay  he  had  therefore  written  to  the 
governor  on  the  subject.  "  I  should  have  been  particularly  obliged," 
was  his  language,  "  if  you  had  declared  whether  he  was  under  my 
command  or  independent  of  it.  I  hope  he  will  have  more  sense 
than  to  insist  upon  any  unreasonable  distinction,  because  he  and 
his  officers  have  commissions  from  his  majesty.  Let  him  consider 
that  though  we  are  greatly  inferior  in  respect  to  advantages  of 
profit,  yet  we  have  the  same  spirit  to  serve  our  gracious  king  as 
they  have,  and  are  as  ready  and  willing  to  sacrifice  our  lives  for 
our  country's  good.  And  here,  once  more,  and  for  the  last  time,  I 
must  say  that  it  will  be  a  circumstance  which  will  act  upon  some 
officers  of  this  regiment  above  all  measure,  to  be  obliged  to  serve 
upon  such  different  terms,  when  their  lives,  their  fortunes,  and 
their  operations,  are  equally,  and,  I  dare  say,  as  effectually  exposed 
as  those  of  the  others,  who  are  happy  enough  to  have  the  king's 
commissions."  Captain  Mackay  was  gentlemanly  in  his  manners 
and  of  an  amiable  temper,  so  that  in  the  discussions  of  this  matter 
between  him  and  Washington  there  were  no  exhibitions  of  warmth 


116  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

or  discourtesy,  but  he  persisted  in  declaring  that  an  officer  holding 
rank  from  the  king  could  receive  no  orders  from  one  commissioned 
by  a  colonial  governer ;  and  he  encamped  separately,  had  a  distinct 
patrol,  and  would  not  consent  that  Washington  should  select  any 
rallying  place  for  his  men  in  case  of  alarm,  or  even  to  receive  from 
him  the  countersign  necessary  for  their  common  safety. 

The  question  at  issue  very  seriously  affected  the  interests  of  the 
service,  and  Washington,  always  deeply  sensitive  upon  points  of 
honor,  sent  an  express  to  the  governor  with  a  letter  soliciting  relief 
from  his  embarrassing  situation.  He  had  made  it  his  particular 
study  to  receive  Captain  Mackay  with  all  the  respect  and  politeness 
due  to  his  rank,  or  that  he  was  capable  of  showing,  and  from  ap 
pearances  did  not  doubt  that  a  friendly  intimacy  might  grow  up 
between  himself  and  that  gentleman  if  this  matter  should  be  satis 
factorily  adjusted.  "I  have  been  particularly  careful,"  he  wrote, 
"  in  discovering  no  feverish  desire  of  commanding  him,  neither  have 
I  intermeddled  with  his  company  in  the  least,  nor  given  any  direc 
tions  concerning  it,  except  in  general,  as  to  the  countersign,  and 
place  of  meeting  in  case  of  an  alarm,  which  he  thinks  he  should  not 
receive.  I  have  testified  to  him  in  the  most  serious  manner  the 
pleasure  I  should  take  in  consulting  and  advising  with  him  upon  all 

occasions Before  orders  will  be  observed,  however,  it  must  be 

known  who  is  to  command,  and  I  am  very  confident  you  will  see 
the  absurdity  and  consider  the  effects  of  Captain  Mackay's  having 
the  direction  of  the  regiment,  for  it  would  certainly  be  the  hardest 
thing  in  life  if  we  are  to  do  double  and  treble  duty  and  neither  be 
entitled  to  the  pay  nor  the  rank  of  soldiers." 

That  there  might  be  no  further  altercation  upon  this  subject, 
which  could  be  settled,  if  settled  at  all,  only  by  the  authoritative 
interference  of  Governor  Dinwiddie,  and  to  remove  the  Virginia 
regiment  from  contagious  examples  of  disobedience  and  idleness, 
Washington  decided  immediately  to  proceed  towards  Redstone 
creek,  and  to  prepare  a  military  road  as  he  advanced.  Accordingly 
he  set  out  the  next  day  from  Fort  Necessity,  leaving  Captain 
Mackay's  company  as  a  guard  to  that  post.  To  clear  and  grade  the 


Mr.  22.]  PRAYERS  IN  THE  CAMP.  117 

way,  so  that  it  should  present  no  unnecessary  obstacles  to  the  pas 
sage  of  artillery  carriages,  was  a  task  of  such  difficulty  that  two 
weeks  were  spent  in  effecting  a  march  through  a  narrow  gorge  of 
the  mountains  to  Gist's  settlement,,  a  distance  of  but  thirteen  miles. 

It  must  have  been  a  picturesque  and  an  impressive  sight,  to  see 
by  some  streamlet,  dashing  through  clefts  of  precipices,  and  under 
gigantic  trees  whose  branches  were  bent  with  the  rich  green  foliage 
of  early  summer,  the  troops,  in  their  red  uniforms,  with  arms  glis 
tening  in  the  occasional  rays  of  sunlight  which  penetrated  the  en 
during  shade,  coming  together  at  the  morning  drum  beat,  with  the 
hereditary  kings  of  the  forest  and  their  followers,  with  painted  faces 
and  strange  and  grotesque  costumes,  to  hear  the  public  prayers 
which  Washington  by  the  advice  of  his  friend  William  Fairfax  had 
instituted  in  the  camp.  As  they  had  no  chaplain  it  may  be  that  he 
himself  read  the  solemn  words  of  devotion.  Certainly  he  must 
have  set  a  fit  example  of  reverent  attention  to  them. 

Scouts  were  continually  in  advance,  sometimes  almost  as  far  as 
Fort  Duquesne,  and  their  reports,  with  intelligence  brought  in  by 
traders,  deserters,  and  friendly  Indians,  of  accessions  to  the  French 
garrison  and  of  a  projected  movement  against  the  English  by  M. 
Coiitrecceur,  induced  a  halt  at  Gist's  place,  where  a  council  of  war 
decided  that  it  was  best  to  make  a  stand  and  await  the  coming  of 
the  enemy.  Entrenchments  were  undertaken,  two  parties  sent  out 
under  Captains  Lewis  and  Poison  were  recalled,  and  an  express 
despatched  to  the  Great  Meadows  to  summon  Captain  Mackay  with 
his  independent  company.  On  the  thirtieth,  another  council  was 
held,  at  which  the  officers  of  the  Virginia  regiment  and  of  the  corps 
from  South  Carolina  were  present.  They  had  now  information 
from  a  trusty  sachem  who  but  two  days  before  had  been  at  the  fort 
on  the  Ohio,  that  he  had  seen  a  considerable  reinforcement  arrive 
there  from  Canada,  and  heard  that  De  Yilliers  would  without  delay 
march  at  the  head  of  eight  hundred  French  and  four  hundred 
Indians  to  attack  the  English.  Others  represented  that  the  enemy 
was  rapidly  approaching,  "as  numerous  as  the  pigeons  in  the 
woods."  The  troops  were  nearly  destitute  of  provisions,  the  ground 


113  WASHINGTON:  A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

they  occupied  had  few  advantages  for  defence,  and  it  was  known 
that  by  another  defile  than  that  by  which  they  had  passed  through 
the  mountains  the  French  might  reach  the  Great  Meadows,  cut  off 
their  supplies,  starve  them  into  a  surrender,  or  fight  them  with  a 
superiority  of  three  to  one.  Under  these  discouraging  circum 
stances  it  was  without  hesitation  decided  to  retreat. 

Preparations  for  retracing  their  steps  were  reluctantly  but  imme 
diately  commenced.  There  was  a  deficiency  of  horses,  and  Wash 
ington  surrendered  his  to  be  laden  with  ammunition  and  other 
public  stores,  hiring  some  of  the  men  for  four  pistoles  to  carry 
forward  his  personal  luggage.  This  generous  example  was  followed 
by  the  other  officers.  Nine  swivels  were  drawn  over  the  rough 
road  by  soldiers  of  the  Virginia  regiment,  feeble  with  hunger  and 
the  sultry  heat,  without  any  assistance  from  the  South  Carolinians, 
who  considered  it  beneath  their  position  to  perform  services  of  this 
nature.  They  also  refused  to  act  as  pioneers,  or  to  take  any  part 
in  the  extraordinary  duties  which  belonged  to  the  occasion.  The 
spectacle  of  their  comfortable  idleness  had  an  unhappy  influence 
upon  the  troops  who  had  thus  far  borne  all  the  burthen  of  the 
difficult  campaign,  and  their  submission  to  a  proper  discipline  was 
only  secured  by  Washington's  inflexible  will,  and  ready  participation 
as  far  as  possible  in  their  toils  and  sufferings. 

They  reached  the  Great  Meadows  on  the  first  of  July,  having 
been  two  days  on  their  march.  When  leaving  Gist's  plantation  it 
had  not  been  the  intention  of  Washington  to  stop  at  this  place,  but 
he  found  that  the  men  were  too  much  exhausted  with  fatigue  and 
a  want  of  food  to  proceed  further.  They  had  been  eight  days 
without  bread,  and  the  commissary's  agent  whom  they  met  here 
had  but  a  few  bags  of  flour,  not  enough  for  a  week,  and  for  cooking 
or  preserving  beef,  for  which  they  had  cattle,  there  was  no  salt.  In 
the  hope  of  being  quickly  joined  by  the  New  York  companies,  of 
whose  landing  at  Alexandria  they  had  heard,  it  was  determined  to 
reoccupy  Fort  Necessity,  and  to  await  the  issue  of  a  siege  or  a 
battle. 

De  Villiers  arrived  in  sight  of  the  works  at  Laurel  Hill  early  on 


JET.  22.]  ARTICLES  OF  CAPITULATION.  121 

as  soon  as  the  French  emerged  from  the  forest.  But  M.  de  Yilliers 
preferred  a  different  course ;  approaching  as  nearly  as  he  could 
under  the  cover  of  trees  that  crowned  a  neighboring  hill,  he  com 
menced  a  desultory  discharge  of  musketry,  without  incurring  any 
danger.  It  was  however  from  so  great  a  distance  as  to  cause  no 
injury,  and  suspecting  that  it  was  but  a  stratagem  to  draw  him  from 
his  position,  Washington  ordered  his  men  to  reserve  their  fire  until 
it  should  be  certain  that  it  would  take  effect.  At  length,  as  there 
were  no  indications  that  the  French  would  adopt  a  bolder  conduct, 
he  retreated  into  the  trenches  and  behind  the  breastworks,  and  in 
structed  his  men  to  fire  at  their  discretion,  as  suitable  opportunities 
should  be  presented. 

The  skies  were  covered  with  gloomy  clotfds,  and  all  day  the  rain 
fell  in  torrents ;  yet  an  irregular  fire  was  kept  up  by  both  sides 
until  dark.  The  English  were  nearly  exhausted,  many  of  their 
guns  were  rendered  unfit  for  use  by  the  storm,  and  they  had  left 
but  a  few  rounds  of  cartridges,  and  but  a  very  small  supply  of 
provisions.  At  eight  o'clock  the  French  requested  a  parley,  but  as 
it  might  be  only  an  artifice  by  which  to  procure  the  admission  of  a 
spy  into  the  fort,  Washington  hesitated,  until  it  was  repeated,  with 
the  stipulation  than  an  officer  might  be  sent  to  them,  under  an 
engagement  of  his  safety  by  M.  de  Villiers,  when  he  despatched  Cap 
tain  Van  Braam,  the  only  person  in  his  regiment  who  could  speak 
French  except  M.  de  Peyroney,  an  ensign,  who  was  so  severely 
wounded  as  to  be  unfit  for  any  service.  Van  Braam  returned 
twice  with  inadmissible  conditions  of  capitulation,  but  the  third 
time  brought  terms  which,  as  he  translated  them,  were  accepted. 

According  to  this  agreement,  as  it  was  understood  by  Washington 
and  all  his  officers,  the  garrison  was  to  leave  the  fort  the  following 
morning,  with  the  honors  of  war,  drums  beating  and  colors  flying, 
taking  everything  they  possessed  except  their  artillery,  and  to  retire 
without  molestation  from  the  French  or  Indians  to  the  inhabited 
parts  of  Virginia.  As  all  their  horses  and  cattle  had  been  killed, 
and  no  means  were  left  for  transporting  the  heavy  luggage,  it  was 
conceded  that  it  might  be  left  in  some  secret  place,  under  a  guard, 


1'22  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

until  wagons  could  be  sent  in  which  to  carry  it  away.  The  prisoners 
taken  in  the  skirmish  with  Jumonville  were  to  be  restored,  and 
Captains  Van  Braam  and  Stobo  were  to  remain  with  the  French  as 
hostages  until  they  returned.  And  finally,  the  party  capitulating 
were  to  attempt  the  building  of  no  fortresses  or  other  establish 
ments  on  lands  belonging  to  the  king  of  France  for  one  year. 

These  articles  were  read  in  English  from  the  French  manuscript, 
by  the  light  of  a  flickering  candle  which  it  was  difficult  to  protect 
from  the  drenching  rain,  among  the  wrecks  of  the  battle,  and  in 
the  presence  of  the  dying  and  the  dead.  By  the  mistranslation  of 
a  word,  through  ignorance,  carelessness,  or  intention,  Washington 
was  made  to  sign  an  article  in  which  the  death  of  Jumonville  was 
called  an  assassination,  and  by  another  erroneous  rendering,  to 
pledge  his  honor  not  to  be  concerned  for  a  stipulated  period  in  any 
invasion  of  the  country  west  of  the  mountains.  Van  Braam,  who, 
as  I  have  mentioned,  was  a  Dutchman,  not  very  familiar  with  either 
the  French  or  the  English  language,  may  possibly  have  thought 
that  his  oral  and  unconsidered  version  of  this  document  was  correct, 
but  it  is  more  probable,  notwithstanding  his  preceding  and  subse 
quent  good  conduct,  considering  the  prevailing  qualities  of  his 
character,  that,  being  persuaded  of  the  impossibility  of  obtaining 
better  conditions  from  M.  de  Yilliers,  and  that  his  commander  would 
sooner  die  than  agree  to  these,  he  consulted  his  own  safety,  and 
especially  his  appetite,  by  what  has  been  called  his  "  too  great  con 
descension"  in  this  matter.* 

*  Washington  did  not  become  acquainted  with  the  real  import  of  the  language  used  in  the  articles 
of  capitulation  until  some  time  afterwards,  and  it  was  not  until  his  attention  was  called  to  an  ac 
count  of  these  transactions  published  by  M.  de  Villiers,  that  he  took  the  trouble,  in  a  letter  to  a 
friend,  entirely  to  refute  the  calumnies  to  which  the  weakness  or  wickedness  of  Van  Braam  had  ex 
posed  him.  In  this  letter  he  says :  "I  can  not  help  remarking  on  Villicrs's  account  of  the  battle  of 
and  transactions  at  the  Meadows,  as  it  is  very  extraordinary,  and  not  less  erroneous  than  incon 
sistent.  He  says  the  French  received  the  first  fire.  It  is  well  known,  that  we  received  it  at  six 
hundred  paces'  distance.  He  also  says,  our  fears  obliged  us  to  retreat  in  a  most  disorderly  manner 
after  the  capitulation.  How  is  this  consistent  with  his  other  account  ?  He  acknowledges,  that  we 
sustained  the  attack  warmly  from  ten  in  the  morning  until  dark,  and  that  he  called  first  to  parley, 
which  strongly  indicates  that  we  were  not  totally  absorbed  in  fear.  If  the  gentleman  in  his  account 
had  adhered  to  the  truth,  he  must  have  confessed  that  we  looked  upon  his  offer  to  parley  as  an 
artifice  to  get  into  and  examine  our  trenches,  and  refused,  on  this  account,  until  they  desired  an 
officer  might  be  set  to  them,  and  gave  their  parole  for  his  safe  return.  He  might  also,  if  he  had 
been  as  great  a  lover  of  the  truth  as  he  was  of  vainglory,  have  said,  that  we  absolutely  refused  their 


MT.  22.]  FORT  NECESSITY  ABANDONED.  123 

In  this  action  twelve  men  were  killed  and  forty-three  wounded 
of  the  Virginia  regiment.  The  number  of  killed  and  wounded  of 
Captain  Mackay's  company  is  not  known.  M.  de  Villiers  states 
in  his  journal  of  these  transactions,  subsequently  published,  that 
the  French  loss  was  but  three  killed  and  seventeen  dangerously 
wounded.  It  was  however  generally  supposed  that  it  was  much 
greater. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  fourth  of  July  Washington  led  out 
the  remains  of  his  gallant  regiment,  in  good  order,  but  they  had 
proceeded  only  a  short  distance  when  a  considerable  body  of  In 
dians  began  to  annoy  them  and  to  plunder  their  luggage.  Per 
ceiving  that  the  French  did  not  or  would  not  protect  them,  accord 
ing  to  the  terms  of  the  capitulation,  and  that  all  their  property 
which  they  could  not  carry  on  their  shoulders  would  fall  into  the 
hands  of  the  savages,  he  ordered  it  to  be  destroyed,  as  well  as  the 
public  stores  for  which  it  had  been  agreed  that  he  should  send  con 
veyances.  At  ten  o'clock  the  melancholy  march  was  resumed,  the 

first  and  second  proposals,  and  would  consent  to  capitulate  on  no  other  terms  than  such  as  we 
obtained.  That  we  were  wilfully  or  ignorantly  deceived  by  our  interpreter  in  regard  to  the  word 
assassination,  I  do  aver,  and  will  to  my  dying  moment ;  so  will  every  officer  that  was  present.  The 
interpreter  was  a  Dutchman,  little  acquainted  with  the  English  tongue,  therefore  might  not  advert 
to  the  tone  and  meaning  of  the  word  in  English  ;  but,  whatever  his  motives  were  for  so  doing,  certa;n 
it  is,  he  called  it  the  death,  or  the  loss,  of  the  Sieur  Jumonville.  So  we  received  and  so  we  under 
stood  it,  until,  to  our  great  surprise  and  mortification,  we  found  it  otherwise  in  a  literal  translation. 
"  That  we  left  our  baggage  and  horses  at  the  Meadows  is  certain  ;  that  there  was  not  even  a  pos 
sibility  to  bring  them  away  is  equally  certain,  as  we  had  every  horse  belonging  to  the  camp  killed  or 
taken  away  during  the  action ;  so  that  it  was  impracticable  to  bring  any  thing  off',  that  our  shoulders 
were  not  able  to  bear;  and  to  wait  there  was  impossible,  for  we  had  scarce  three  days'  provisions,  and 
were  seventy  miles  from  a  supply ;  yet,  to  say  we  came  off  precipitately  is  absolutely  false ;  not 
withstanding  they  did,  contrary  to  articles,  suffer  their  Indians  to  pillage  our  baggage,  and  commit 
all  kinds  of  irregularity,  we  were  with  them  until  ten  o'clock  the  next  day;  we  destroyed  our 
powder  and  other  stores,  nay,  even  our  private  baggage,  to  prevent  its  falling  into  their  hands,  as 
we  could  not  bring  it  off'.  When  we  had  got  about  a  rnile  from  the  place  of  action,  we  missed  two 
or  three  of  the  wounded,  and  sent  a  party  back  to  bring  them  up  ;  this  is  the  party  he  speaks  of. 
We  brought  them  all  safe  off",  and  encamped  within  three  miles  of  the  Meadows.  These  are  cir 
cumstances,  I  think,  that  make  it  evidently  clear,  that  we  were  not  very  apprehensive  of  danger. 
The  colors  he  speaks  of  as  left  were  a  large  flag  of  immense  size  and  weight ;  our  regimental  colors 
were  brought  off  and  are  now  in  my  possession.  Their  gasconade,  and  boasted  clemency,  must 
appear  in  the  most  ludicrous  light  to  every  considerate  person,  who  reads  Villiers's  journal ;  such 
preparations  for  an  attack,  such  vigor  and  intrepidity,  as  he  pretends  to  have  conducted  his  march 
with,  such  revenge  as  by  his  own  account  appeared  in  his  attack,  considered,  it  will  hardly  be 
thought  that  compassion  was  his  motive  for  calling  a  parley.  But  to  sum  up  the  whole,  Mr.  Vil 
liers  pays  himself  no  great  compliment  in  saying,  we  were  struck  with  a  panic  when  matters  were 
adjusted.  We  surely  could  not  be  afraid  without  cause,  and  if  we  had  cause  after  capitulation,  it 
was  a  reflection  upon  himself." 


124  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

soldiers  carrying  not  only  their  arms  and  personal  effects,  but  also 
their  wounded  companions.  In  this  way  they  were  compelled  to 
proceed,  slowly  and  wearily,  seventy  miles,  to  Will's  creek,  where 
they  found  ample  provisions  for  their  comfort  in  the  military 
magazines. 

Leaving  here  both  the  Virginia  regiment  and  the  independent 
company  from  South  Carolina,  Washington,  with  Captain  Mackay, 
proceeded  to  Williamsburgh,  and  in  person  communicated  to  Gov 
ernor  Dinwiddie  the  closing  events  of  the  campaign.  He  had  the 
satisfaction  of  learning  that  his  conduct  and  that  of  his  troops  was 
warmly  approved  by  the  governor,  the  council,  and  the  public. 

He  soon  after  returned  to  Mount  Yernon,  and  having  passed  a 
brief  period  in  attending  to  his  private  affairs,  visited  his  mother,  at 
Fredericksburg,  and  rejoined  his  regiment,  which  had  now  arrived 
at  Alexandria. 

The  house  of  burgesses  assembled  in  the  beginning  of  August, 
and  the  subject  of  the  late  operations  against  the  French  was  im 
mediately  brought  before  it.  The  agreement  between  himself  and 
M.  de  Villiers,  of  which  Washington  had  received  a  duplicate  copy, 
was  printed,  with  a  correct  translation,  and  its  objectionable  features 
for  the  first  time  understood  by  him.  His  indignation,  and  that  of 
his  friends,  was  excited  by  what  they  believed  to  have  been  the 
culpable  conduct  of  Van  Braam  in  connection  with  it.  The  bur 
gesses,  to  whom  the  facts  were  properly  explained,  recognized  with 
great  unanimity  the  honorable  services  of  Washington  and  his 
officers,  in  resolutions  of  thanks  for  "their  bravery  and  gallant 
defence  of  their  country;"  and  voted  from  the  public  treasury 
three  hundred  pistoles  —  nearly  eleven  hundred  dollars  —  to  be 
distributed  among  the  private  soldiers  engaged  in  the  action.  From 
these  expressions  of  gratitude  the  names  of  Washington's  early 
instructors  in  the  military  art,  Major  Muse  and  Captain  Van  Braam, 
were  excluded :  the  first  being  charged  with  cowardice,  and  the  last 
with  treachery  in  erroneously  rendering  into  English  the  articles  of 
capitulation. 

Governor  Dinwiddie  was  not  at  all  disheartened  by  the  recent 


yET.  22.]  NEW  MOVEMENTS  PROPOSED.  125 

misfortunes,  but  his  ardor  and  ignorance  of  military  affairs  led  him 
to  propose  new  measures  for  the  recovery  of  the  disputed  territory 
which  were  wholly  impracticable.  Soon  after  Washington  had 
rejoined  his  regiment  he  received  instructions  to  fill  up  his  deci 
mated  companies  with  recruits,  and  march  without  delay  to  Will's 
creek,  where  Colonel  Innes  with  the  remnant  of  his  North  Carolina 
troops,  the  South  Carolina  company  of  Captain  Mackay,  and  the 
two  independent  companies  from  New  York,  were  building  Fort 
Cumberland  f  and  at  the  same  time  he  was  informed  of  the  gov 
ernor's  intention  to  order  the  combined  forces  immediately  across 
the  mountains  to  capture  Fort  Duquesne  or  erect  another  fort  on 
the  Ohio.  On  the  eleventh  of  the  month  he  addressed  a  letter  to 
Mr.  William  Fairfax,  who  was  a  member  of  the  governor's  council, 
in  which  he  represented  with  unanswerable  ability  the  absurdity  of 
this  scheme.  It  was  out  of  time,  as,  commenced  at  that  season  it 
would  have  to  be  prosecuted  in  the  winter ;  his  men  had  not  been 
paid  their  wages  for  the  last  campaign,  and  were  so  destitute  that 
scarcely  one  of  them  had  shoes,  stockings,  or  a  hat ;  they  had  nei 
ther  provisions  nor  military  stores  of  any  description  sufficient  to 
justify  their  taking  the  field ;  and  not  a  shilling  was  furnished  with 
which  to  obtain  these  necessities  or  secure  new  enlistments. 

Washington  had  too  just  a  sense  of  his  duties  as  a  soldier  to 
permit  a  conviction  of  the  difficulties  of  executing  the  governor's 
designs  to  prevent  his  obedience  to  superior  authority,  and  he 
therefore  attempted  to  carry  into  effect  the  orders  sent  to  him. 
The  house  of  burgesses  having  risen  however  without  appropri 
ating  any  funds  for  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  the  project  for  dis 
possessing  the  French  of  their  conquests  was  abandoned. 

The  burgesses  came  together  again  in  October,  and  though  they 
had  still  various  unsettled  controversies  with  the  governor,  they 
voted  twenty  thousand  pounds  for  the  public  service,  and  the  ap 
peals  he  had  made  to  the  home  administration  were  soon  afterwards 
answered  by  a  grant  of  ten  thousand  pounds  and  a  supply  of  arms. 

*  So  called  in  honor  of  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  at  that  time  captain  general  of  the  British 


126  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

The  money  received  from  England  was  entirely  under  his  control, 
and  he  made  use  of  it  in  enlarging  the  army  to  ten  companies  of 
one  hundred  men  each,  and  other  vigorous  preparations  for  a  new 
expedition  against  the  French,  to  march  early  in  the  spring.  In 
consequence  of  letters  he  had  written  to  the  ministers  on  the  sub 
ject,  orders  were  sent  out,  "  for  settling  the  rank  of  the  officers  of 
his  majesty's  forces  when  serving  with  the  provincials  in  North 
America,"  in  which  it  was  directed  "  that  all  officers  commissioned 
by  the  king  or  his  general  should  take  rank  of  all  officers  commis 
sioned  by  the  governors  of  the  respective  provinces ;  and  further, 
that  the  general  and  field  officers  of  the  provincial  troops  should 
have  no  rank  when  serving  with  the  general  and  other  commissioned 
officers  commissioned  by  the  crown ;  but  that  all  captains  and  other 
inferior  officers  of  the  royal  troops  should  take  rank  over  provincial 
officers  of  the  same  grade,  having  senior  commissions."  The  effect 
was  to  reduce  Washington  from  the  rank  of  colonel  to  that  of 
captain.  So  humiliating  a  degradation  was  not,  of  course,  to  be 
submitted  to  by  a  gentleman,  and  he  indignantly  resigned  his  com 
mission  and  retired  to  private  life. 


.  22.]  THE  CONGRESS  AT  ALBANY.  127 


CHAPTEE   XIII. 

CONGRESS  OF  DELEGATES  AT  ALBANY FRANKLIN'S  PLAN  OF  UNION IT  IS  RE 
JECTED  BY  THE  ROYAL  GOVERNMENT  AND  THE  COLONIAL  ASSEMBLIES MEET 
ING  WITH  THE  CHIEFS  OF  THE  IROQUOIS SPEECH  OF  HENDRIK THE  DUKE 

OF   NEWCASTLE    AND     HORATIO    GATES GOVERNOR     SHARPE    APPOINTED     COM 
MANDER   IN    CHIEF MAKES    OVERTURES    TO    WASHINGTON  TO  REENTER  THE 

SERVICE  —  WASHINGTON'S   REPLY — GOVERNOR  DINWIDDIE'S   CONDUCT  IN  RE 
GARD  TO  THE    FRENCH  PRISONERS DROUILLON  AND  LA  FORCE CAPTAINS  VAN 

BRAAM  AND  STOBO. 

THE  same  fourth  of  July,  1754,  on  which  Washington  marched 
out  of  Fort  Necessity,  with  the  honors  of  war,  Benjamin  Franklin, 
at  this  time  in  the  maturity  of  his  genius,  submitted  to  a  congress 
of  delegates  from  each  of  the  colonies  north  of  the  Potomac,  assem 
bled  at  Albany,  a  plan  of  union.  Union,  since  our  principal  source 
and  assurance  of  strength,  was  then  unknown  among  the  provincial 
governments,  and  the  successes  of  the  French,  threatening  misfor 
tune  or  ruin  to  all  British  America,  had  impressed  the  wisest  of  our 
public  characters,  in  every  direction,  with  a  sense  of  its  paramount 
necessity.  The  metropolis  of  the  proposed  confederation  was  to  be 
Philadelphia,  the  most  populous,  growing  and  central  city  in  the 
king's  dominions  this  side  of  the  sea.  Franklin  supposed  it  could 
be  reached  from  the  extremes  of  the  country,  New  Hampshire  or 
South  Carolina,  in  fifteen  or  twenty  days.  A  grand  council  of  forty- 
eight  members,  consisting  of  not  more  than  seven  nor  less  than  two 
from  any  colony,  elected  triennially,  was  to  undertake  the  com 
mon  defence  at  the  common  cost,  apportion  demands  of  men  and 
money,  direct  the  operations  of  the  troops,  and  pass  such  laws 
as  should  be  necessary  for  the  general  welfare.  The  chief  execu 
tive  officer,  to  be  styled  the  president  general,  was  to  be  appointed 
by  the  crown,  and  to  have  a  veto  upon  all  acts  of  the  council,  and, 


_J 


128  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

with  the  concurrence  of  that  body,  the  appointment  of  all  the  mil 
itary  officers,  and  the  entire  direction  of  Indian  affairs.  The  coun 
cil,  in  turn,  was  to  nominate  civil  officers,  for  the  confirmation  of 
the  president  general.  Nearly  all  the  delegates  from  New  England 
supported  this  plan,  but  it  was  disapproved  by  those  from  Connecti 
cut,  who  were  apprehensive  of  danger  from  the  veto  of  the  presi 
dent.  On  the  other  side,  James  Delancy,  of  New  York,  opposed  it 
on  the  ground  that  he  would  have  reserved  to  the  colonial  gov 
ernors  a  negative  on  all  elections  to  the  grand  council.  It  was 
however  popular  with  the  people,  and  Franklin,  as  its  author,  re 
ceived  unusual  compliments  as  he  passed  through  New  York  on  his 
way  homeward.  But  when  it  came  before  the  several  assemblies, 
they  all  rejected  it,  as  conferring  too  much  power  on  the  king.  In 
London  it  found  as  little  favor  for  the  opposite  reason ;  and  so  com 
plete  and  judicious  a  system  of  government  created  surprise,  and 
revived  fears  of  American  independence.  It  was  suggested  by  the 
Board  of  Trade,  that  a  convention  of  colonial  governors  and  others 
be  authorized  to  draw  on  the  royal  treasury  for  certain  purposes, 
and  that  the  sums  thus  obtained  be  repaid  by  taxes  imposed  by 
parliament.  It  became  apparent  that  the  colonies  would  not  readily 
submit  to  this  scheme  of  taxation,  and  nothing  was  done  for  the 
organization  of  their  energies. 

A  delegation  of  the  head  men  of  the  Iroquois  met  the  provincial 
congress  at  Albany,  to  renew  treaties,  receive  presents,  and  concert 
plans  of  combined  activity.  Hendrik,  the  great  sachem  of  the 
Mohawks,  expressed  their  feelings  in  one  of  his  speeches.  "We 
thank  you,"  he  said,  "for  renewing  and  brightening  the  covenant 
chain.  We  will  take  this  belt  to  Onondaga,  where  our  council  fire 
always  burns,  and  keep  it  so  securely  that  neither  the  thunderbolt 
nor  the  lightning  shall  break  it,"  And,  contemplating  the  inefficiency 
of  the  English,  as  compared  with  their  enemies,  he  added,  in  the 
temper  displayed  a  few  weeks  previously  by  Tanacharisson,  "  You 
desired  us  to  open  our  minds  and  hearts  to  you :  Look  at  the 
French ;  they  are  near ;  they  are  fortifying  everywhere ;  but,  we 
are  ashamed  to  say  it,  you  are  like  women,  without  any  fortifica- 


Mr.  22.]  THE  DUKE  OF  NEWCASTLE.  129 

tlons ;  it  is  but  a  step  from  Canada  hither,  and  the  French  may 
easily  come  and  turn  you  out  of  doors." 

The  want  of  forecast  of  which  the  Indian  complained  could 
scarcely  be  charged  against  the  royal  governors,  who  were  gener 
ally  willing  to  drain  the  colonies  of  their  resources  for  the  prose 
cution  of  the  war,  or  any  thing  else  that  would  please  the  home 
administration ;  but  for  one  reason  or  another  they  nearly  all  agreed 
with  Dinwiddie  that  the  opposing  assemblies  were  "obstinate,  self- 
opinionated,  a  stubborn  generation ;"  and  that  there  was  no  means 
of  managing  this  matter  in  a  satisfactory  way  but  "  by  an  act  of 
parliament  to  compel  subjects  here  to  obedience  to  his  majesty's 
commands,  and  to  protect  their  property  from  the  insults  of  the 
French."  Mr.  Sparks  very  properly  suggests,  in  answer  to  this,  that 
the  people  who  owned  the  property  and  lived  on  the  spot  were 
quite  as  well  qualified  to  judge  for  themselves  how  far  it  needed 
protection. 

No  decided  measures  were  adopted  in  England  or  America  for 
regaining  possession  of  the  Ohio,  or  resisting  new  advances  of  the 
enemy,  though  it  was  known  that  Fort  Duquesne  was  inadequately 
guarded,  and  that  at  other  points  they  were  ill  prepared  for  de 
fence.  The  Duke  of  Newcastle,  the  most  powerful  subject  in  the 
realm,  "a  statesman  without  capacity  or  the  smallest  tincture  of 
human  learning,  a  secretary  who  could  not  write,  a  financier  who 
did  not  understand  the  multiplication  table,  and  the  treasurer  of  a 
vast  empire  who  never  could  balance  accounts  with  his  own  butler,"* 
was  willing  to  obtain  applause  by  proposing  a  successful  system  of 
operations,  but  his  lack  of  wit  prevented.  He  consulted  several 
persons,  in  the  hope  .that  one  or  another  of  them  would  suggest  an 

*  Smollet  tells  us  that  "he  was  generally  laughed  at,  as  an  ape  in  politics,  whose  office  and 
influence  only  served  to  render  his  folly  the  more  notorious."  Horace  W'alpole  relates  that  when 
General  Ligonier  hinted  to  him  the  necessity  of  some  defence  for  Annapolis,  he  replied,  with  his 
evasive,  lisping  hum,  "Annapolis  !  Annapolis  !  Oh,  yes  !  Annapolis  must  he  defended;  to  be  sure, 
Annapolis  should  be  defended  :  where  is  Annapolis  ?"  (George  the  Second,  i.  344.)  His  knowledge 
of  geography  is  illustrated  by  another  anecdote,  of  an  earlier  date.  At  the  beginning  of  the  war  he 
was  once  frightened  by  a  story  that  thirty  thousand  French  had  left  Acadia  for  Cape  Breton. 
"  Where  did  they  find  transports  ?"  was  asked.  "Transports  !"  cried  he,  "they  marched  by  land." 
"By  land,  to  the  island  of  Cape  Breton!"  "What!  is  Cape  Breton  an  island?  are  you  sure  of 
that  1  Egad  !  I  will  go  directly  and  tell  the  king  that  Cape  Breton  is  an  island  !" 

9 


130  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

idea  that  he  might  turn  to  account  as  his  own,  but  was  disappointed. 
Horatio  Gates,  destined  to  act  a  conspicuous  part  in  our  history, 
had  just  returned  from  America,  where  he  had  acquired  some  repu 
tation,  and  the  minister  sent  for  him.  The  young  officer  however 
understood  his  own  position,  and  was  deferential  and  incommunica 
tive.  He  pleaded  his  inexperience,  said  he  had  seen  nothing  of  the 
country  except  those  parts  of  Nova  Scotia  in  which  his  regiment 
had  been  quartered,  and  begged  to  be  excused  from  advising  in  a 
matter  so  much  above  his  abilities.  He  was  too  shrewd  to  submit 
a  scheme  of  which  the  failure  would  be  his  ruin,  or  the  success  but 
an  addition  to  the  fame  of  his  superiors.  Mr.  Hanbury,  the  London 
agent  of  the  Ohio  Company,  it  was  thought  might  know  something 
of  America,  and  he  was  summoned.  He  does  not  appear  to  have 
affected  any  modesty,  or  to  have  evinced  an  unwillingness  to  give 
the  government  advantage  of  his  wisdom.  Early  in  November, 
upon  his  recommendation,  Lieutenant  Colonel  Horatio  Sharpe,  who 
was  governor  of  Maryland,  received  the  king's  commission  as  com 
mander  in  chief  of  all  the  forces  engaged  against  the  French,  with 
instructions  to  make  his  headquarters  in  Virginia.  He  immediately 
endeavored  to  induce  Washington  to  re-enter  the  army.  Colonel 
Fitzhugh,  who  during  his  own  absence  in  visiting  the  military  posts, 
or  in  executing  his  duties  as  governor,  was  to  have  the  command, 
by  his  orders  addressed  the  retired  soldier  a  flattering  letter  on  the 
subject.  "I  am  confident,"  remarked  this  officer,  "that  the  general 
has  a  very  great  regard  for  you,  and  will  by  every  circumstance 
in  his  power  make  you  very  happy.  For  my  part  I  shall  be  ex 
tremely  fond  of  your  continuing  in  the  service,  and  would  advise 
you  by  no  means  to  quit  it.  In  regard  to  the  independent  com 
panies,  they  wrill  in  no  shape  interfere  with  you,  as  you  will  hold 
your  post  during  their  continuance  here,  and  when  the  regiment  is 
reduced  will  have  a  separate  duty." 

Washington  replied  in  a  manner  which  must  have  convinced  the 
royal  officers  that  his  co-operation  was  to  be  secured  only  upon  the 
most  honorable  conditions.  After  thanking  Colonel  Fitzhugh  for 
the  terms  in  which  he  had  written  to  him,  he  added,  "  But  I  think 


JET.  22.]  DECLINES  REENTERING  THE  ARMY.  131 

the  disparity  between  the  present  offer  of  a  company  and  my 
former  rank  too  great  to  expect  any  real  satisfaction  or  enjoyment 
in  a  corps  where  I  once  had  or  thought  I  had  the  right  to  command, 
even  if  his  excellency  had  the  power  to  suspend  the  orders  received 
in  the  letter  of  the  secretary  of  war,  which,  hy  the  by,  I  am  very 
far  from  thinking  he  has. . . .  You  make  mention  of  my  continuing 
in  the  service  and  retaining  my  colonel's  commission.  This  idea 
has  filled  me  with  surprise,  for  if  you  think  me  capable  of  holding 
a  commission  that  has  neither  rank  nor  emolument  annexed  to  it, 
you  must  entertain  a  very  contemptible  opinion  of  my  weakness.... 
I  could  enumerate  many  good  reasons  that  forbid  all  thoughts  of 
iny  returning,  and  which  to  you  or  any  other  person  would,  upon 
the  strictest  scrutiny,  appear  to  be  well  founded....  I  shall  have 
the  consolation  of  knowing  that  I  have  opened  the  way,  when  the 
smallness  of  our  numbers  exposed  us  to  the  attacks  of  a  superior 
enemy ;  that  I  have  hitherto  stood  the  heat  and  brunt  of  the  day, 
and  escaped  untouched  in  time  of  extreme  danger ;  and  that  I  have 
the  thanks  of  my  country  for  the  service  I  have  rendered  it." 

Washington  had  learned  that  Governor  Dinwiddie  had  been 
guilty  of  duplicity  in  the  proceedings  which  caused  his  resignation, 
and  he  added,  "  The  information  T  have  received  shall  not  sleep  in 
silence,  that  those  peremptory  orders  from  home,  which  you  say 
could  not  be  dispensed  with,  for  reducing  the  regiment  to  inde 
pendent  companies,  were  generated  and  hatched  at  Will's  creek. 
Ingenuous  treatment  and  plain  dealing  I  at  least  expected."  The 
governor  had  requested  such  orders,  and  was  confident  of  ob 
taining  them,  but  they  did  not  arrive  until  the  following  winter. 
Washington  concluded  his  letter  to  Colonel  Fitzhugh  by  saying: 
"It  is  to  be  hoped  the  project  wrill  answer;  it  shall  meet  with  my 
acquiescence  in  every  thing  except  personal  services.  I  herewith 
inclose  Governor  Sharpe's  letter,  which  I  beg  you  will  return  to 
him,  with  my  acknowledgments  for  the  favor  he  intended  me. 
Assure  him,  as  you  truly  may,  of  my  reluctance  to  quit  the  service, 
and  of  the  pleasure  I  should  have  received  in  attending  his  for 
tunes.  Inform  him,  also,  that  it  was  to  obey  the  call  of  honor,  and 


132  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

the  advice  of  my  friends,  that  I  declined  it,  and  not  to  gratify  any 
desire  I  had  to  leave  the  military  line.  My  inclinations  are  strongly 
bent  to  arms." 

He  had  other  and  quite  sufficient  reasons  for  leaving  the  army, 
besides  those  affecting  his  rank.  One  of  these  was  the  refusal  of 
Governor  Dinwiddie  to  give  up  the  French  prisoners  taken  in  the 
skirmish  with  Jumonville,  according  to  the  conditions  of  the  sur 
render  of  Fort  Necessity.  This  subject  had  been  ineffectually 
discussed  by  him  in  repeated  remonstrances.  The  governor  at 
tempted  an  explanation  of  it,  in  a  letter  to  the  Board  of  Trade. 
"  The  French/'  he  wrote,  "  after  the  capitulation  entered  into  with 
Colonel  Washington,  took  eight  of  our  people,  and  exposed  them 
for  sale,  and,  missing  thereof,  sent  them  prisoners  to  Canada.  On 
hearing  of  this,  I  detained  the  seventeen  privates,  the  officer, 
and  two  cadets,  as  I  am  of  opinion  that  after  they  were  in  my 
custody  Washington  could  not  engage  for  their  being  returned.  I 
have  ordered  a  flag  of  truce  to  be  sent  to  the  French,  offering  the 
return  of  their  officer  and  the  two  cadets  for  the  two  hostages  they 
have  of  ours."  Of  course,  such  an  arrangement  was  declined ;  the 
contract  had  been  specific  and  particular,  and  M.  Contrecoeur  was 
entirely  justifiable  in  refusing  to  liberate  Van  Braam  and  Stobo 
until  the  English  fulfilled  their  part  of  it. 

The  officer  mentioned  by  the  governor  was  M.  Drouillon,  de 
scribed  by  Major  Adam  Stephen  as  "a  pert  fellow,"  and  probably 
not  regarded  by  any  one  as  a  very  dangerous  enemy.  No  proposi 
tion  was  made  to  set  at  liberty  a  more  important  prisoner.  Wash 
ington  had  written  from  the  Great  Meadows :  "  La  Force  would,  if 
released,  I  really  think,  do  more  to  our  disservice  than  fifty  other 
men,  as  he  is  a  person  whose  active  spirit  leads  him  into  all  parties, 
and  has  made  him  acquainted  with  all  parts  of  the  country;  added 
to  which,  is  a  perfect  use  of  the  Indian  tongue,  and  great  influence 
with  the  Indians."  When  he  visited  Williamsburg,  after  resigning 
his  commission,  he  found  him  in  close  confinement,  though  Drouillon 
and  the  cadets  were  allowed  to  go  at  large.  The  governor  was 
inclined  to  keep  him  in  idleness  as  long  as  possible,  and  did  not 


JET.  22.]  CAPTAIN  ROBERT  STOBO.  133 

wish  to  understand  the  principles  of  honor  and  equity  upon  which 
Washington  demanded  his  liberation.* 

The  course  pursued  by  Governor  Dinwiddie  respecting  the 
French  prisoners,  especially  his  treatment  of  La  Force,  naturally 
gave  offence  to  M.  Contrecceur,  and  in  retaliation  he  sent  the  hos 
tages  received  from  Washington  to  Quebec,  to  be  imprisoned  there, 
though  not  until  Captain  Stobo  had  found  means  to  communicate 
some  important  information  from  Fort  Duquesne  as  to  the  numbers, 
resources,  and  designs  of  the  enemy. 

Robert  Stobo,  now  about  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  was  a  native 
of  Glasgow,  and  had  settled  in  Virginia  as  a  shopkeeper  before  the 
commencement  of  the  war.  His  Scotch  origin  probably  procured 
him  a  commission  in  Fry's  regiment,  which  the  Huguenot  Maury 
says  was  officered  with  "  raw,  surly  and  tyrannical  Scots,  several  of 
them  mere  boys  from  behind  the  counters  of  the  factors."-}-  Stobo, 
whatever  the  means  or  influences  by  which  his  place  was  acquired, 
w^as  not  unworthy  of  it.  On  the  twenty-eighth  of  July  he  induced 
an  Indian  to  carry  a  letter,  embracing  the  information  above 
referred  to,  and  accompanied  by  a  plan  of  the  fort,  to  the  Eng 
lish  camp.  "  There  are  two  hundred  men  here,"  he  wrote,  "  and 
two  hundred  are  expected.  The  rest  have  gone  off  in  detachments, 
to  the  amount  of  one  thousand,  besides  Indians.  None  lodge  in 
the  fort  but  Contrecoeur  and  the  guard,  consisting  of  forty  men 
and  five  officers :  the  rest  lodge  in  bark  cabins  around  it.  The 
Indians  have  access  day  and  night,  and  come  and  go  when  they 
please.  If  one  hundred  trusty  Shawnees,  Mingoes,  and  Delawares, 
were  picked  out,  they  might  surprise  the  fort,  lodging  themselves 
under  the  palisades  by  day,  and  at  night  secure  the  guard  with  their 
tomahawks,  shut  the  sally  gate,  and  the  fort  is  ours."  Alluding  to 
the  danger  in  which  Van  Braam  and  himself  might  be  involved,  he 

*  Burke,  in  his  history  of  Virginia,  gives  an  interesting  though  a  somewhat  confused  account  of 
the  detention  of  La  Force.  By  almost  incredible  efforts  he  escaped  from  the  prison  at  Williamsburg, 
and  made  his  way  several  miles  into  the  country,  when  his  imperfect  English  betrayed  him,  and  he 
was  arrested  and  subjected  to  a  more  rigorous  confinement.  Mr.  Lyman  C.  Draper  conjectures  that 
he  was  the  same  person  who  was  active  as  "  M.  La  Force,  captain  of  the  schooner  Iroquois/'  on 
Lake  Ontario,  just  before  the  surrender  of  Fort  Niagara  to  the  English,  in  1759. 

t  Memoirs  of  a  Huguenot  Family,  p.  404. 


134  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 

added,  "  consider  the  good  of  the  expedition,  without  regard  to  us ; 
when  we  engaged  to  serve  the  country  it  was  expected  we  wrere  to 
do  it  with  our  lives.  For  my  part,  I  would  die  a  hundred  deaths  to 
have  the  pleasure  of  possessing  the  fort  but  one  day.  They  are  so 
vain  of  their  success  at  the  Meadows,  it  is  worse  than  death  to  hear 
them."  This  letter  fell  into  the  hands  of  George  Croghan,  the 
Indian  trader,  by  whom  it  was  forwarded  to  the  governor  of  Penn 
sylvania,  so  that  it  may  not  have  reached  its  proper  destination  for 
several  weeks.  Being  found  by  the  French  in  Braddock's  cabinet, 
the  next  year,  it  exasperated  them  against  the  author  of  it,  and 
caused  an  increase  of  severity  in  his  imprisonment.* 

*  Stobo  and  Van  Braam  were  confined  first  at  Quebec  and  afterwards  at  Montreal.  By  extra 
ordinary  exertions  they  escaped  from  prison,  but  soon  after  separated,  and  Van  Braam,  fainting 
with  fatigue  and  hunger,  and  despairing  of  success,  on  perceiving  from  under  the  arch  of  a  cause 
way,  where  he  was  concealed,  the  governor  general  passing  in  his  carnage,  came  out  and  surrendered 
himself,  and  was  remanded  to  his  old  quarters,  where  he  remained  until  Montreal  was  captured  by 
the  British  on  the  eighth  of  September,  1760.  Early  in  the  following  November  he  returned  to 
Williarnsburg,  Virginia,  having  been  absent  six  years.  Time  and  his  sufferings  appear  to  have 
softened  prejudices  or  modified  opinions  in  regard  to  his  conduct  at  Fort  Necessity,  for  he  now  ob 
tained  his  share  of  the  Virginia  bounty  lands,  under  an  award  made  by  Washington,  as  commis 
sioner,  ar.d  on  the  fourteenth  of  June,  1777,  was  made  a  major  in  the  royal  American  sixtieth  regi 
ment  of  foot,  then  stationed  in  the  West  Indies. 

The  career  of  Stobo  was  more  remarkable.  After  many  perilous  adventures  he  succeeded  about 
the  beginning  of  June,  1759,  in  reaching  Louisburg,  in  the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  where  he  was 
kindly  received  by  General  Wolfe,  to  whom  he  was  able  to  give  much  important  information  relative 
to  the  French  armament  in  Canada.  He  accompanied  the  English  forces  to  the  plains  of  Abraham, 
and  in  the  beginning  of  the  next  December  was  again  in  Williamsburg,  where  the  legislature,  then  in 
session,  passed  a  resolution  "  that  the  sum  of  one  thousand  pounds  be  paid  by  the  treasurer  of  this 
colony  to  Captain  Robert  Stobo,  over  and  above  the  pay  that  is  due  to  him  from  the  time  of  his 
surrendering  himself  as  a  hostage  to  this  day,  as  a  reward  for  his  zeal  to  his  country,  and  a  recom 
pense  for  the  great  hardships  he  has  endured  during  his  confinement,"  &c.  By  another  resolution 
the  governor  was  desired  to  promote  him  in  the  public  service,  and  by  a  third,  Mr.  Nicholas,  Mr. 
Bland  and  Mr.  Washington  were  appointed  a  committee  to  thank  him  and  congratulate  him  on  his 
safe  return  to  Virginia.  On  the  fifth  of  June,  1760,  he  was  made  a  captain  in  Amherst's  regiment, 
(the  fifteenth  foot,)  and  he  is  known  to  have  held  this  position  as  late  as  1765.  In  1768  he  was  in 
England,  and  David  Hume  thus  mentions  him  in  a  letter  to  Tobias  Smollet,  written  on  the  twenty- 
first  of  September  in  that  year :  "  I  did  not  see  your  friend  Captain  Stobo  till  the  day  I  left  Civen- 
cester,  and  only  for  a  little  time ;  but  he  seemed  to  be  a  man  of  good  sense,  and  has  surely  had  the 
most  extraordinary  adventures  in  the  world.  He  has  promised  to  call  on  me  when  he  comes  to 
London,  and  I  shall  always  see  him  with  pleasure."  It  has  been  stated  that  he  was  the  original  of 
Smollet's  famous  character  of  Lishmahago.  He  published  Memoirs  of  his  Life,  but  I  have  not  been 
able  to  discover  where  or  at  what  time  he  died. 


JEr.  22.]  THE  BRADDOCK  FAMILY.  135 


CHAPTER   XIV. 

GOVERNOR  SHARPE  SUPERSEDED  IN  THE  CHIEF  COMMAND THE  BRADDOCK  FAMILY 

FANNY    BRADDOCK CAREER    AND    CHARACTER  OF  GENERAL    EDWARD    BRAD- 
DOCK HE    IS  APPOINTED    GENERALISSIMO  OF  THE    BRITISH  FORCES  IN  AMERICA 

HIS    LAST    NIGHT  IN  LONDON HIS    ARRIVAL    IN    THE  CHESAPEAKE VISIT  TO 

DINWIDDIE MEETS     SIR     JOHN     ST.     CLAIR OVERTURES     TO     WASHINGTON 

CONGRESS  OF  GOVERNORS PLANS  OF  OPERATIONS WHO  SHALL  FILL  THE  MIL 
ITARY  CHEST WASHINGTON  INTRODUCED  TO  THE  GOVERNORS. 

TIIE  appointment  of  Governor  Sharpe  to  the  chief  command  of 
the  army  in  America  was  a  measure  of  temporary  expediency. 
His  friends  would  have  persuaded  the  king  to  continue  him  in  this 
position.  They  urged  in  his  behalf  his  exceeding  honesty,  while 
compelled  to  admit  that  he  was  not  possessed  of  much  ability.  "  A 
little  less  honesty,"  replied  his  majesty,  "  and  a  little  more  ability, 
might  upon  the  present  occasion  better  serve  our  turn."  The  gov 
ernment,  though  still  attempting  to  amuse  the  French  with  profes 
sions  of  peace,  had  decided  vigorously  to  maintain  all  its  pretensions 
on  this  continent,  and  with  this  view  to  send  out  at  the  head  of 
an  adequate  force  one  of  the  bravest  and  most  accomplished  soldiers 
of  the  empire.  Such  a  one,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Duke  of  Cumber 
land,  captain  general  of  the  army,  was  Edward  Bradclock,  and 
Horace  Walpole,  describing  him  as  "  desperate  in  his  fortune,  brutal 
in  his  behavior,  and  obstinate  in  his  sentiments,"  agreed  with  the 
royal  chief  that  "  he  was  still  intrepid  and  capable." 

Major  General  Edward  Bradclock,  the  elder,  of  the  Coldstream 
Guards,  had  died  at  Bath  in  1725,  leaving  two  daughters  and  one 
son,  with  incomes  suificient  for  the  preservation  of  an  elegant  style 
of  living.  The  son,  then  about  thirty  years  of  age,  had  been  nine 
years  a  lieutenant  in  the  Guards.  One  of  the  daughters  died  soon 
after,  and  the  other,  a  brilliant  and  beautiful  woman,  sacrificed  her 


136  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1754. 


fortune  to  relieve  the  necessities  of  a  man  she  loved,  was  abandoned 
by  him,  driven  to  the  gaming  table,  and  reduced  to  the  condition 
of  a  governess  in  the  family  of  a  tradesman.  Her  melancholy 

history  is  related  by  Goldsmith,  as  that  of  "  Sylvia  S ,"  in  his 

life  of  Richard  Nash.  It  was  closed  by  suicide.  "  Thus,"  says  the 
amiable  author,  "  ended  a  female  wit,  a  toast,  and  a  gamester, 
formed  for  the  delight  of  society,  fallen  by  imprudence  into  an 
object  of  pity."  The  conduct  of  her  brother,  who  on  hearing  of 
the  event  exclaimed,  "  Poor  Fanny !  I  always  thought  she  would 
play  till  forced  to  tuck  herself  up,"  led  Walpole  to  declare  him  "  a 
very  Iroquois  in  disposition."  This  heartlessness  was  characteristic. 
Braddock  was  with  his  regiment  in  the  celebrated  battle  of  Fon- 
tenoy,  in  the  summer  of  1745,  and  in  the  following  November 
was  made  its  lieutenant  colonel,  the  next  year  became  a  brigadier 
general,  and  in  1749  was  again  stationed  in  London,  where  he 
rapidly  acquired  new  distinctions  among  profligate  men  of  rank 
and  fashion.  "  He  once  had  a  duel,"  writes  Walpole,  "  with  Colonel 
Glumley,  who  had  been  his  great  friend,  As  they  were  going  to 
engage,  Glumley,  who  had  good  humor  and  wit,  said,  '  Braddock, 
you  are  a  poor  dog!  here,  take  my  purse — if  you  kill  me  you  will 
be  forced  to  run  away,  and  then  you  will  not  have  a  shilling  to 
support  you !'  He  refused  the  purse,  insisted  on  the  duel,  was  dis 
armed,  and  would  not  even  ask  for  his  life."*  In  1753,  anxious  to 
leave  England,  on  account  of  debts  and  other  causes,  he  was  sta 
tioned  at  Gibraltar;  during  his  absence,  on  the  twenty-ninth  of 
May,  1754,  was  appointed  a  major  general;  and  on  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  the  ensuing  September  was  ordered  to  proceed  to  Virginia, 
as  commander  in  chief  of  all  the  British  troops  in  North  America. 
The  night  before  he  left  London  he  called  with  two  of  his  com 
panions,  Colonel  Burton  and  Captain  Orme,  upon  Anne  Bellamy, 
the  actress,  with  whom  he  had  maintained  for  many  years  a  peculiar 
relation.  "  Before  we  parted,"  she  informs  us  in  her  memoirs,  "  the 
general  told  me  he  should  never  see  me  more,  for  he  was  going 
with  a  handful  of  men  to  conquer  whole  nations,  and  to  do  this 

*  Walpolc's  Correspondence,  Hi.,  142. 


M-e.  22.]  GENERAL  BRADDOCK.  137 

they  must  cut  their  way  through  unknown  woods.  He  produced  a 
map  of  the  country,  saying,  at  the  same  time,  '  We  are  sent  like 
sacrifices  to  the  altar.'"  She  defends  him  from  the  charge  of  a 
want  of  feeling.  "  As  we  were  walking  in  the  Park  one  day/'  she 
says,  "  we  heard  a  poor  fellow  was  to  be  chastised,  when  I  requested 
him  to  beg  off  the  offender.  Upon  his  application  to  the  general 
officer,  whose  name  was  Dury,  he  asked  Braddock  how  long  since 
he  had  divested  himself  of  brutality  and  the  insolence  of  his  man 
ners  ;  to  which  the  other  replied,  4  You  never  knew  me  insolent  to 
my  inferiors ;  it  is  only  to  such  rude  men  as  yourself  that  I  behave 
with  the  spirit  which  I  think  they  deserve.'"  It  is  an  agreeable 
duty  to  soften  as  much  as  possible  the  repulsive  portrait  commonly 
drawn  of  him  by  his  contemporaries.  His  name  is  more  familiar  in 
this  country  than  that  of  any  other  British  soldier  of  our  colonial 
era.  His  bravery  was  unquestionable,  and  no  one  would  regret  a 
conviction  that  he  had  other  virtues. 

General  Braddock  sailed  for  America  on  the  twenty-first  of 
December,  in  the  Norwich,  convoyed  by  the  Centurion,  flag  ship 
of  Commodore  Keppel,  and  arrived  in  Hampton  Eoads  on  the 
twentieth  of  February.  He  was  soon  folloAved  by  the  rest  of  the 
squadron,  with  two  regiments,  each  of  five  hundred  men,  one  under 
Colonel  Sir  Peter  Halket,  and  the  other  under  Colonel  Thomas  Dun- 
bar.  Two  more  regiments,  each  of  one  thousand  men,  were  to  be 
raised  in  the  colonies,  at  the  king's  cost,  and  commanded  by  Sir  Wil 
liam  Pepperell  and  Governor  Shirley  of  Massachusetts.  These, 
with  the  independent  companies,  the  levies  expected  of  the  several 
governors,  and  such  Indians  as  it  was  believed  might  be  enlisted,  it 
was  thought  would  make  up  an  effective  force  of  not  less  than 
twelve  thousand. 

In  the  preceding  October  Lieutenant  Colonel  Sir  John  St.  Clair 
had  been  sent  out  as  deputy  quartermaster  general,  and  he  had 
since  been  actively  engaged  in  visiting  military  posts,  exploring 
the  scenes  of  anticipated  operations,  making  contracts  for  supplies, 
and  preparations  generally  for  an  expedition  into  the  disputed  terri 
tory. 


13d  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

General  Braddock  immediately  proceeded  to  Williamsburg  to 
confer  with  Governor  Dinwiddie.  He  found  Sir  John  St.  Clair 
there  awaiting  his  arrival,  and  they  were  soon  joined  by  Commodore 
Keppel.  The  interviews  which  followed  were  in  the  main  satis 
factory,  though  the  favorable  reports  of  the  governor  and  the 
quartermaster  in  regard  to  provisions  and  means  of  transportation, 
to  be  furnished  by  inhabitants  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  were  not 
justified  by  subsequent  occurrences.  While  at  Williamsburg  the 
general  wrote  to  the  governors  of  all  the  colonies,  informing  them 
of  his  commission,  recommending  a  common  fund  for  military  pur 
poses,  and  urging  an  earnest  cooperation  in  the  business  which  the 
king  had  undertaken  for  the  benefit  of  his  American  subjects.  In 
his  communications  to  Shirley  of  Massachusetts,  Delancey  of  New 
York,  Morris  of  Pennsylvania,  and  Sharpe  of  Maryland,  he  re 
quested  them  to  meet  him  at  Annapolis  on  the  first  of  April,  for 
consultation  upon  matters  of  great  importance  to  the  country,  and 
for  the  settlement  of  a  plan  of  operations  against  the  French.  On 
the  twenty-sixth  of  March  the  general,  with  Governor  Dinwiddie 
and  Commodore  Keppel,  arrived  at  Alexandria,  where  the  troops 
were  encamped,  and  the  next  day  issued  his  first  general  orders  to 
the  army  in  America. 

Since  resigning  his  commission  Washington  had  been  industriously 
occupied  with  agricultural  pursuits,  for  which,  as  is  well  known,  he 
had  through  all  his  life  a  strong  predilection.  The  debarkation  and 
temporary  establishment  at  Alexandria  of  the  regiments  of  Halket 
and  Dunbar,  superior  in  discipline  and  appointments  to  any  soldiers 
he  had  hitherto  seen,  revived  his  military  enthusiasm,  and  he  did  not 
attempt  to  conceal  his  regret  at  being  unable  without  a  sacrifice 
of  self  respect  to  share  with  them  the  duties  and  dangers  of  the 
approaching  campaign.  General  Braddock,  who  was  acquainted 
with  his  merits  and  services,  could  not  disapprove  of  the  feelings 
which  had  induced  his  retirement  from  the  army,  and  properly 
appreciating  the  advantages  to  be  derived  from  his  abilities  and 
experience,  he  directed  Captain  Orine,  one  of  his  aids,  to  propose 
an  expedient  by  which  the  principal  difficulties  in  the  case  would 


JEr.  23.]  BRADDOCK  AND  WASHINGTON.  139 

be  removed.  "  The  general/'  this  officer  wrote  to  Washington  on 
the  second  of  March,  "having  been  informed  that  you  expressed 
some  desire  to  make  the  campaign,  but  that  you  declined  it  upon 
some  disagreeableness  that  you  thought  might  arise  from  regulations 
of  command,  has  ordered  me  to  acquaint  you  that  he  will  be  very 
glad  of  your  company  in  his  family,  by  which  all  inconveniences  of 
that  kind  will  be  obviated."  He  did  not  at  once  determine  what 
course  to  pursue,  but  in  reply  to  this  note  frankly  stated  that  he 
was  anxious  to  increase  his  acquaintance  with  the  military  art,  and 
should  be  strongly  influenced  by  the  consideration  that  he  might 
do  so  under  a  commander  of  Braddock's  reputation.  There  was 
some  further  correspondence  on  the  subject,  and  on  the  second  of 
April  he  addressed  to  Orme  the  conditions  upon  which  he  would 
accept  the  invitation.  "  I  find  myself,"  he  said,  "  much  embarrassed 
with  my  affairs,  having  no  person,  in  whom  I  can  confide,  to  intrust 
the  management  of  them  with ;  notwithstanding,  I  am  determined 
to  do  myself  the  honor  of  accompanying  you,  upon  this  proviso, 
that  the  general  will  permit  my  return  as  soon  as  the  active  part 
of  the  campaign  is  at  an  end,  if  desired,  or,  if  there  should  be  a 
space  of  inaction,  long  enough  to  admit  of  a  visit  to  my  home,  that 
I  may  be  indulged  in  coming  to  it."  Captain  Orme  answered, 
"  The  general  orders  me  to  give  you  his  compliments,  and  to  assure 
you  his  wishes  are  to  make  it  agreeable  to  yourself  and  consistent 
with  your  interests ;  and  therefore  he  desires  you  will  so  settle  your 
business  at  home  as  to  join  him  at  Will's  creek,  if  more  convenient 
to  you ;  and  whenever  you  find  it  necessary  to  return,  he  begs  you 
will  look  upon  yourself  as  entirely  your  own  master,  and  judge 
what  is  proper  to  be  done." 

In  a  letter  to  his  friend  Mr.  Robinson,  speaker  of  the  house  of 
burgesses,  Washington  explained  with  his  customary  sincerity  and 
modesty  the  reasons  which  induced  him  to  accept  a  place  in  General 
Braddock's  staff.  Pecuniary  advantage  was  impossible,  as  he  was  a 
volunteer,  receiving  neither  compensation  nor  even  his  expenses,  and 
compelled  to  neglect  private  affairs  which  demanded  all  his  atten 
tion  ;  and  he  looked  for  no  promotion,  as  it  was  not  in  the  power 


140  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

of  the  commander  to  confer  on  him  any  welcome  military  distinc 
tion.  In  a  degree  he  was  doubtless  fascinated  by  the  circumstance 
and  excitement  of  war.  and  he  confessed  an  anxiety  to  study  strat 
egy,  tactics,  and  the  art  of  moving  armies,  under  an  approved  mas 
ter.  Schooled  in  the  wildernesses  to  the  vicissitudes  of  the  seasons, 
and  the  difficulties  and  perils  of  border  and  savage  life,  the  educa 
tion  necessary  for  his  great  mission  was  incomplete  till  he  should 
learn  the  refinements  of  discipline  and  conduct  with  such  leaders 
as  he  was  to  meet  as  enemies ;  and  dreams  of  this  sort  may  have 
mingled  with  his  ever  earnest  desire  to  become  an  accomplished 
soldier ;  but  the  controlling  motive  which  led  him  to  the  field  was, 
as  he  says,  "the  laudable  one  of  serving  his  country  —  not  the 
gratification  of  any  ambitious  or  lucrative  plans.  My  friends,"  he 
added,  "  may  conceive  that  some  advantageous  offers  have  engaged 
my  services,  when,  in  reality,  it  is  otherwise,  for  I  expect  to  be  a 
considerable  loser  in  my  private  affairs  by  going.  It  is  true,  I  have 
been  importuned  to  make  the  campaign  by  General  Braddock,  as  a 
member  of  his  family,  he  conceiving,  I  suppose,  that  the  small 
knowledge  I  have  had  an  opportunity  of  acquiring,  of  the  countrv 
and  the  Indians,  is  worthy  of  his  notice,  and  may  be  useful  to  him 
in  the  progress  of  the  expedition." 

Before  he  complied  with  the  general's  invitation,  his  mother, 
having  heard  that  he  would  probably  return  to  the  army,  and  again 
expose  himself  to  the  hardships  and  dangers  of  a  campaign,  has 
tened  from  Fredericksburg  to  Mount  Yernon  to  dissuade  him  from 
any  project  of  this  kind.  The  feelings  which  had  led  her  to  pre 
vent  his  entering  the  navy  were  still  more  powerful  than  all  others 
in  her  heart.  But  he  reasoned  with  her  of  duty,  sterner  in  au 
thority  than  affection,  and  obtained  her  reluctant  acquiescence  in. 
his  decision. 

Braddock  had  been  ill,  but  was  recovered  sufficiently  to  meet  the 
governors  whom  he  had  summoned  to  a  council  at  Annapolis. 
They  went  to  Alexandria,  where,  on  the  fourteenth  of  April,  he 
laid  before  them  his  instructions,  his  plans,  and  his  expectations. 
Besides  Dinwiddie,  there  were  present  Shirley,  Delancey,  Sharpe, 


JET.  23.]  EXPEDITIONS  PROPOSED.  141 

and  Morris.     Commodore  Keppel  also  was  admitted  to  their  delib 
erations. 

Upon  consultation  it  was  resolved  that  there  should  be  three 
distinct  expeditions.  The  first,  against  Fort  Duquesne,  for  the 
expulsion  of  the  French  from  the  valley  of  the  Ohio,  was  to  be 
conducted  by  General  Braddock  in  person,  with  his  English  regulars, 
the  levies  from  Virginia,  Maryland,  and  Pennsylvania,  and  such 
Indians  as  might  be  induced  to  join  him.  After  taking  this  strong 
hold  the  general  in  chief  proposed  to  continue  his  advance  to 
Niagara,  reducing  all  the  French  establishments  on  his  route.  A 
garrison  of  not  less  than  two  hundred  provincials  was  to  be  left  at 
Fort  Duquesne,  at  the  cost  of  the  nearest  colonies ;  and  as  the 
enemy,  should  they  retreat  on  his  approach,  would  probably  destroy 
as  much  as  they  could  of  their  defences,  any  restorations  or  addi 
tions  he  might  think  necessary  were  to  be  executed  by  the  same 
interested  parties,  who  were  also  to  furnish  the  post  with  artillery 
and  provisions.  Should  he  decide  to  build  a  fort  upon  the  Erie, 
and  to  order  one  or  more  vessels  to  be  constructed  for  the  protection 
of  that  lake,  the  expense  attending  both  these  measures  was  like 
wise  to  be  borne  by  the  above  named  governments.  He  anticipated 
a  series  of  conquests  as  easy  as  they  would  be  considerable,  and 
already  felicitated  himself  upon  the  prospect  of  spending  a  merry 
Christmas  with  Governor  Morris,  in  Philadelphia.  The  second 
expedition  was  to  march  against  Niagara,  leaving  reinforcements  on 
the  way  at  Oswego,  a  post  of  the  greatest  importance  for  facilitating 
the  proposed  attack  on  Niagara,  and  securing  the  retreat  of  the 
troops  to  be  employed  on  that  service.  This  was  to  be  under  the 
direction  of  Governor  Shirley,  who  had  recently  been  appointed  a 
major  general.  He  was  to  improve  the  fort  at  Oswego,  and  build 
and  equip  two  ships  there,  each  of  sixty  tons,  for  the  command  of 
Lake  Ontario.  The  third  was  for  the  reduction  of  Crown  Point,  on 
the  Champlain,  and  was  to  be  led  by  Colonel  William  Johnson.  It 
was  to  consist  of  the  irregulars  promised  by  New  Jersey,  New  York, 
Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  Khode  Island,  and  New  Hampshire, 
amounting  to  four  thousand  and  four  hundred  men,  besides  Indians. 


142  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

At  the  same  time  Lieutenant  Colonel  Monckton  was  instructed  to 
cooperate  with  Colonel  Lawrence,  governor  of  that  province,  in 
measures  for  driving  out  the  French  from  Nova  Scotia. 

Colonel  Johnson,  Avho  had  resided  more  than  twenty  years  near 
the  Mohawk  river,  in  the  province  of  New  York,  where  he  had 
acquired  not  only  a  large  estate,  but,  it  was  believed,  an  unprece 
dented  influence  with  the  Indian  tribes  of  that  part  of  the  country, 
was  offered  a  diplomatic  agency  to  the  Six  Nations,  but  at  first 
declined  it,  as  promises  he  had  been  authorized  to  make  these 
Indians  in  174G  had  not  yet  been  fulfilled,  so  that  he  was  placed 
under  the  disagreeable  necessity  of  deceiving  them,  and  the  French 
had  made  use  of  this  fact  very  much  to  the  disadvantage  of  the 
English.  The  general  conviction  of  his  especial  fitness  for  the 
duties  proposed,  and  the  extraordinary  powers  with  which  it  was 
agreed  to  invest  him,  overcame  his  objections,  however,  and  he  was 
commissioned  as  sole  manager  and  director  of  Indian  affairs,  and 
intrusted  with  ample  funds  for  the  purchase  of  presents,  or  to  be 
used  according  to  his  discretion  in  securing  the  friendship  of  the 
Iroquois  and  their  allies.* 

It  was  suggested  to  General  Braddock  that  New  York  should  be 
made  the  centre  of  operations,  as  from  that  colony  there  was  easy 
access  by  water  to  the  heart  of  the  French  possessions  in  Canada ; 

*  William  Johnson  was  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  was  born  in  1715.  His  uncle,  Vice  Admiral 
Sir  Peter  Warren,  who  acquired  distinction  at  the  capture  of  Louisburg,  and  by  the  defeat  of  the 
French  squadron  sent  to  recover  that  post,  had  married  Susan,  eldest  sister  of  Governor  James 
Delancey,  of  New  York,  and  had  become  possessed  of  very  large  estates  in  the  valley  of  the 
Mohawk.  Johnson,  when  about  nineteen  years  of  age,  in  consequence  of  the  unfortunate  ending 
of  a  love  affair,  wished  to  leave  Ireland,  and  his  uncle  sent  for  him  to  take  charge  of  his  wild  lands 
in  this  country.  He  settled  first  at  the  mouth  of  the  Schoharie,  but  after  learning  the  language  of 
the  Indians,  and  carrying  on  a  lucrative  trade  with  them  several  years,  he  built  the  two  mansions  in 
the  Mohawk  valley  known  as  Johnson  Castle  and  Johnson  Hall,  both  of  which  were  fortified,  arid  sur 
rounded  with  cabins  for  the  accommodation  of  the  Indians.  He  supplied  the  place  of  his  former  love 
by  a  Dutch  damsel,  who  bore  him  several  children,  and  was  married  by  him  when  on  her  deathbed. 
A  subsequent  favorite  was  a  sister  of  Brant,  the  celebrated  Mohawk  chief.  He  held  the  place  of 
commissioner  for  Indian  affairs  in  New  York  from  1746  to  1751,  and  when  the  chiefs  of  the  Six 
Nations  met  the  Congress  at  Albany,  in  1754,  they  applied  for  his  reappointment.  No  other  white 
man  had  ever  acquired  as  great  an  influence  among  them.  Soon  after  the  council  at  Alexandria  he 
was  made  a  major  general,  and  his  victory  over  Dieskau,  at  Lake  George,  procured  him  a  baronetcy 
and  a  gift  of  five  thousand  pounds  from  the  king.  He  died  suddenly  —  some  thought  by  suicide  — 
on  the  eleventh  of  July,  1774.  His  mind  was  coarse,  but  quick  and  vigorous,  and  he  was  not  very 
scrupulous  of  the  rights  of  others.  No  biography  of  him  has  been  written,  but  valuable  materials 
for  one  have  been  published  by  Dr.  O'Callaghan  in  the  Documentary  History  of  New  York. 


JE-r.  23.]         SHALL  THE  COLONIES  BE  TAXED?  143 

but  he  was  not  at  liberty  to  depart  from  his  instructions,  in  which 
the  recent  fortifications  of  the  enemy  in  the  valley  of  the  Ohio 
were  named  as  the  objects  to  which  he  was  to  direct  his  personal 
attention.  The  Pennsylvanians  held  that  even  for  this  purpose  the 
selection  of  the  point  from  which  the  army  was  to  inarch  was 
unfortunate,  as  Virginia  could  furnish  neither  forage,  provisions, 
wagons,  nor  cattle,  in  all  of  which  Pennsylvania  abounded,  but  it 
was  too  late  for  any  changes  of  this  nature,  even  if  consistent  with 
the  orders  received  from  the  captain  general. 

But  the  subject  first  presented  and  most  earnestly  commended 
to  the  consideration  of  the  governors  was  that  of  colonial  revenue. 
His  instructions  commanded  him  to  insist  that  a  fund  be  established 
for  the  benefit  of  all  the  colonies  collectively,  and  as  Sir  Thomas 
Robinson  had  explained  to  them  in  advance  the  views  of  the  ad 
ministration  on  this  question  his  anger  was  excited  that  no  such 
fund  was  already  established.  The  governors  present  recapitulated 
their  controversies  with  their  assemblies,  and  replied  that  nothing 
of  this  nature  could  be  accomplished  here  but  by  the  direct  inter 
position  of  parliament.  "Having  found  it  impracticable  to  obtain 
in  their  respective  governments  the  proportions  expected  by  his 
majesty  toward  defraying  the  expense  of  his  service  in  North 
America,  they  were  unanimously  of  opinion  that  it  should  be  pro 
posed  to  his  majesty's  ministers  to  find  out  some  method  of  com 
pelling  them  to  give  it,  and  of  assessing  the  several  governments,  in 
proportion  to  their  respective  abilities,  their  shares  of  the  whole 
money  already  furnished,  and  which  it  shall  be  thought  proper  for 
them  further  to  furnish,  towards  the  general  expense  of  his  service."* 
The  king's  agents  were  the  king's  friends,  in  all  controversies  of 
this  description.  The  opinions  of  the  governors  were  sent  home 
by  the  general  with  a  declaration  of  his  own  conviction  of  their 
justice.  But  these  opinions  had  little  weight  with  the  inhabitants 
of  the  country,  and  were  entitled  to  little  with  the  crown.  "  The 
people  of  the  colonies,"  Franklin  had  written  to  Shirley,  "are  better 

*  Minutes  of  the  Council  at  Alexandria,  as  published  in  the  Documentary  History  of  New 
York,  ii.  379. 


144  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

judges  of  the  necessary. preparations  for  defence,  and  of  their  own 
abilities  to  bear  them,  Governors  often  come  to  the  colonies  merely 
to  make  fortunes,  with  which  they  intend  to  return  to  Britain ;  are 
not  always  men  of  the  best  abilities  or  integrity;  and  have  no 
natural  connection  with  us,  that  should  make  them  heartily  con 
cerned  for  our  welfare."  Besides,  it  was  held  in  that  day,  against 
the  pretence  that  England  was  graciously  expending  her  treasure 
here  exclusively  for  our  benefit,  "  that  these  colonies  were  an  object 
of  the  highest  importance  to  the  mother  country,  and  already  the 
chief  basis  of  its  trade  and  independence ;"  and  "  that  it  was  more 
for  the  interest  of  the  nation  to  carry  on  a  war  with  the  French,  in 
America,  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  world,  since  all  the  money 
circulated  in  the  colonies  returned  in  the  end  to  Great  Britain."* 
Franklin,  in  a  paper  which  was  reprinted  in  London  in  1755,  had 
drawn  attention  to  the  rapid  increase  of  population  in  this  country. 
His  estimates  were  confirmed  by  Shirley,  in  a  letter  to  Sir  Thomas 
Robinson.  Every  twenty  years  the  number  of  the  inhabitants  was 
doubled,  and  as  the  demand  for  British  manufactures,  with  a  corre 
sponding  employment  of  shipping,  increased  with  still  greater 
rapidity,  the  reasonableness  of  the  demand  that  the  colonies  should 
pay  all  the  expenses  of  the  war  was  not  very  apparent. 

General  Braddock  wrote  to  Lord  Halifax,  "  I  cannot  sufficiently 
express  my  indignation  against  the  provinces  of  Pennsylvania  and 
Maryland,  whose  interests  being  alike  concerned  in  this  expedition, 
and  much  more  so  than  any  others  on  this  continent,  refuse  to  con 
tribute  anything  towards  the  project."  But  admitting  the  equity 
of  the  claim  on  these  colonies,  their  conduct  is  vindicated  in  what 
Franklin  says  of  Pennsylvania,  which  is  equally  applicable  to  the 
case  of  Maryland.  "  The  proprietaries,  our  hereditary  governors," 
he  tells  us,  "  when  any  expense  was  to  be  incurred  for  the  de 
fence  of  their  province,  with  incredible  meanness  instructed  their 
deputies  to  pass  no  act  for  levying  the  necessary  taxes  unless 
their  vast  estates  were  in  the  same  act  expressly  exonerated ; 

*  Bradford's  American  Magazine  and  Monthly  Chronicle  for  the  British  Colonies,  for  Novem 
ber,  1757. 


MT.  1?3.]  INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  GOVERNORS.  145 

and  they  had  even  taken  bonds  of  their  deputies  to  observe  such 
instructions." 

Although  the  colonies  of  Virginia,  New  York  and  Massachusetts, 
with  some  others,  had  voted  liberal  appropriations  of  money  for  carry 
ing  on  the  war,  and  New  England  generally  had  surpassed  the  expec 
tations  of  the  ministers  in  supplies  of  munitions  and  men,  this  ques 
tion  of  revenue  was  not  to  be  finally  decided  until  the  revolution, 
twenty  years  after ;  and  the  congress  of  governors  at  Alexandria 
could  only  recommend  to  the  commander  in  chief  that  he  should 
make  use  of  his  credit  with  the  home  government  for  current  ex 
penses  lest  the  expedition  should  come  to  a  stand.* 

Washington  was  introduced  to  the  assembled  governors,  and  the 
manner  in  which  he  was  treated  by  them  was  a  flattering  assur 
ance  of  the  consideration  in  which  his  character  was  already  held 
throughout  the  country.  A  son  of  Shirley  had  accompanied  Brad- 
dock  from  England,  as  his  secretary,  and  with  him  the  young  sol 
dier  had  perhaps  already  become  intimate,  so  that  his  acquaintance 
with  the  father  was  more  familiar  than  that  he  formed  with  the 
others.  Certainly,  he  was  "  especially  well  received"  by  that  distin 
guished  person,  whose  abilities  and  demeanor  u  perfectly  charmed" 
him.  "  I  think,"  he  wrote,  "  his  every  word  and  action  discover  in 
him  the  gentleman  and  the  politician."  The  meaning  of  this  last 
word  has  changed  in  the  hundred  years  since  it  was  thus  used  by 
Washington. 

*  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,  vi.  366. 

10 


146  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 


CHAPTER   XV. 

DELAYS     OF     THE     ARMY DEPARTURE     FROM     ALEXANDRIA WASHINGTON     AN 
NOUNCED    AS   AID    DE    CAMP THE    GENERAL    IS    ENRAGED SIR  JOHN  ST.  CLAIR 

ACTS  THE  LION    RAMPANT ALARM    OF  THE    PENNSYLVANIA  ASSEMBLY FRANK 
LIN  VISITS  THE  CAMP HIS   INTERVIEWS  WITH  BRADDOCK PROVIDES  FOR  HIM 

HORSES  AND  WAGONS BECOMES  ACQUAINTED  WITH  WASHINGTON THE  MARCH 

TO  WILL'S  CREEK THE  MUSTER  AT  FORT  CUMBERLAND GATES,  MORGAN,  ETC. 

COLONEL  GAGE INDIANS  AND  BACKWOODSMEN SCENES  IN  THE  CAMP. 

EVERY  day  brought  to  General  Braddock  some  new  disappoint 
ment.  He  had  written  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  from  Williams- 
burg  on  the  first  of  March  that  he  should  be  beyond  the  Alleghanies 
by  the  end  of  April,  and  his  sanguine  expectations  were  not 
changed  when  a  month  afterwards  he  advised  the  ministers  to  look 
for  intelligence  of  his  successes  in  June.  It  was  not  until  the 
twentieth  of  April,  however,  that  he  left  Alexandria,  and  he  had 
proceeded  only  to  Fredericktown  in  Maryland  when  compelled  to 
halt  for  means  of  transportation.  Sir  John  St.  Clair  had  reported 
to  him  arrangements  for  supplying  twenty-five  hundred  horses  and 
two  hundred  wagons,  but  only  one  hundred  horses  and  fifteen 
wagons  had  been  furnished,  and  there  was  no  prospect  of  any  more. 
"Washington,  who  had  been  detained  by  private  business  at  Mount 
Vernon,  joined  him  here,  and  on  the  tenth  of  June  was  announced 
in  the  orders  of  the  day  as  an  aid  de  camp  to  the  commander  in 
chief.  He  found  him  in  the  midst  of  his  anger,  and  was  not  pre 
pared  to  regard  it  as  altogether  unreasonable,  though  he  combated 
the  general's  opinion  that  the  great  body  of  the  people  were  as 
much  at  fault  as  the  irresponsible  contractors  who  had  deceived  the 
commissary.  It  is  true  nevertheless  that  the  inhabitants  of  the 
country  manifested  very  little  interest  in  the  expedition.  They 
suspected  that  Great  Britain  and  France  had  chosen  for  considera- 


JEr.  23.]  SIR  JOHN  ST.  CLAIR  IN  A  STORM.  147 

tioiis  in  which  they  were  not  deeply  concerned  to  carry  on  a  war 
in  America,  and  were  disposed  to  be  as  passive  as  circumstances 
would  permit. 

Edward  Shippen,  afterwards  chief  justice  of  Pennsylvania,  men 
tions  in  a  letter  to  his  father*  that  Governor  Morris  had  laid  before 
the  assembly  of  that  province  a  communication  from  General  Brad- 
dock  in  which  he  stated  that  he  should  "  take  due  care  to  burthen 
those  colonies  most  that  showed  least  loyalty  to  his  majesty ;  and 
that  he  was  determined  to  obtain  by  unpleasant  methods  what  it 
was  their  duty  to  contribute  with  the  utmost  cheerfulness.  The 
assembly,"  continues  Shippen,  "  know  not  how  to  stomach  this  mili 
tary  address,  but  it  is  thought  it  will  frighten  them  into  some  reason 
able  measures,  as  it  must  be  a  vain  thing  to  contend  with  a  general 
at  the  head  of  an  army,  though  he  should  act  an  arbitrary  part, 
especially  as  in  all  probability  he  will  be  supported  in  everything 
at  home."  Subsequently  the  members  of  a  commission  sent  to 
Will's  creek,  to  attend  to  the  construction  of  a  military  road,  wrote 
to  Governor  Morris  some  details  of  an  interview  they  had  had  there 
with  Sir  John  St.  Clair.  "  He  was  extremely  warm  and  angry  at 
our  province,"  they  observed,  "and  stormed  like  a  lion  rampant. 
He  said  the  want  of  this  road  and  the  provisions  promised  by  the 
Pennsylvanians  had  retarded  the  expedition,  and  might  cost  them 
their  lives,  because  of  the  fresh  numbers  of  French  which  might  be 
poured  into  the  country ;  that  instead  of  marching  to  the  Ohio  he 
would  in  nine  days  march  his  troops  into  Cumberland  county,  to 
cut  roads,  and  press  wagons  and  horses ;  that  he  would  not  allow  a 
soldier  to  handle  an  axe,  but  would  by  the  sword  compel  the  people 

to  do  it,  and  take  every  man  that  refused  to  the  Ohio ; that  if 

the  French  defeated  them  in  consequence  of  the  delays  of  this 
province,  he  would  with  his  drawn  sword  pass  through  it,  and  treat 
the  inhabitants  as  traitors  to  his  master ;  that  he  would  write  to 
England  by  a  man  of  war,  revoke  Mr.  Penn's  proprietaryship,  and 
represent  Pennsylvania  as  a  disaffected  province ;  that  he  would 

*  Letters  and  Papers  relating  chiefly  to  the  Provincial  History  of  Pennsylvania,  &c.,  (edited  by 
Thomas  Balch,  Esq.,  and  privately  printed:)  p.  35. 


H8  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

not  hesitate  to  impress  our  assembly,  for  his  hands  were  not  tied, 
and  that  we  should  find." 

The  assembly,  apprehending  from  these  and  other  communica 
tions  on  the  subject,  that  the  general  had  received  violent  prejudices 
against  them,  as  averse  to  the  service,  requested  Franklin  to  wait 
upon  him,  not  as  from  them,  but  as  postmaster  general,  with  the 
pretended  object  of  settling,  at  their  expense,  the  mode  of  con 
ducting  his  correspondence  with  the  provincial  governors.  In  his 
memoirs  Franklin  informs  us  that  he  accepted  the  mission,  and  pro 
ceeded  with  his  son  to  the  camp  at  Fredericktown,  where  they  found 
the  general  impatiently  waiting  the  return  of  persons  he  had  sent 
into  the  back  parts  of  Maryland  and  Virginia  to  collect  wagons. 
"  I  stayed  with  him,"  he  writes,  "  several  days,  dined  with  him  daily, 
and  had  full  opportunities  of  removing  his  prejudices  by  information 
of  what  the  assembly  had  before  his  arrival  actually  done,  and  were 
still  doing,  to  facilitate  his  operations." 

The  quiet  humor,  strong  sense,  and  practicalness  of  Franklin 
pleased  the  general,  but  it  was  impossible  even  for  this  eloquent 
and  shrewd  talker  to  disturb  his  mind  with  a  doubt  of  success. 
One  clay  Braddock  gave  him  some  account  of  his  intended  progress. 
"After  taking  Fort  Duquesne,"  said  he,  "  I  am  to  proceed  to  Niagara, 
and  having  taken  that,  to  Frontenac,  if  the  season  will  allow  time ; 
and  I  suppose  it  will,  for  Duquesne  can  hardly  detain  me  above 
three  or  four  days  —  and  then  I  can  see  nothing  that  can  obstruct 
my  march  to  Niagara."  Franklin  having  revolved  in  his  mind  the 
long  line  the  army  must  make  in  their  march  by  a  very  narrow 
road,  to  be  cut  for  them  through  the  woods  and  bushes,  and  also 
what  he  had  heard  of  a  former  defeat  of  fifteen  hundred  French 
who  invaded  the  Illinois  country,  had  conceived  some  doubts  and 
some  fears  for  the  event  of  the  campaign ;  but  he  ventured  only  to 
say,  "  To  be  sure,  sir,  if  you  arrive  well  before  Duquesne  with  these 
fine  troops,  so  well  provided  with  artillery,  the  fort,  though  com 
pletely  fortified,  and  assisted  with  a  very  strong  garrison,  can  proba 
bly  make  but  a  short  resistance.  The  only  danger  I  apprehend  of 
obstruction  to  your  march,  is  from  the  ambuscades  of  the  Indians, 


J£T.  23.]  BRADDOCK  AND  FRANKLIN.  149 

who,  by  constant  practice,  are  dexterous  in  laying  and  executing 
them;  and  the  slender  line,  nearly  four  miles  long,  which  your 
army  must  make,  may  expose  it  to  be  attacked  by  surprise  on  its 
flanks,  and  to  be  cut  like  thread  into  several  pieces,  which,  from 
their  distance,  cannot  come  up  in  time  to  support  each  other." 
The  general  smiled  at  his  ignorance,  and  replied,  "  These  savages 
may  indeed  be  a  formidable  enemy  to  raw  American  militia,  but 
upon  the  king's  regular  and  disciplined  troops,  sir,  it  is  impossible 
they  should  make  an  impression."  The  philosopher  tells  us  he  was 
conscious  of  the  impropriety  in  his  disputing  with  a  military  man 
in  matters  of  his  profession,  and  said  no  more. 

When  he  was  about  to  depart  the  returns  of  wagons  to  be  ob 
tained  were  brought  in,  by  wrhich  it  appeared  that  they  amounted 
only  to  twenty-five,  and  not  all  these  were  in  serviceable  condition. 
The  general  and  all  the  officers  were  surprised,  declared  the  expedi 
tion  was  then  at  an  end,  being  impossible,  and  exclaimed  against 
the  ministers  for  ignorantly  sending  them  into  a  country  destitute 
of  the  means  even  of  carrying  their  stores  and  baggage,  not  less 
than  one  hundred  and  fifty  wagons  being  necessary. 

Franklin  happened  to  say  he  thought  it  was  a  pity  they  had  not 
landed  in  Pennsylvania,  as  in  that  country  almost  every  farmer  had 
his  wagon.  Braddock  eagerly  laid  hold  of  his  words  and  said, 
"Then  you,  sir,  who  are  a  man  of  interest  there,  can  probably 
procure  them  for  us,  and  I  beg  you  will  undertake  it."  He  asked 
what  terms  were  to  be  offered  the  owners  of  the  wagons,  and  was 
desired  to  put  on  paper  such  as  to  him  appeared  necessary.  He 
did  so,  they  were  agreed  to,  and  a  commission  and  instructions 
immediately  prepared. 

Colonel  D  unbar,  while  Franklin  was  supping  with  the  officers  of 
his  regiment,  one  evening,  expressed  to  him  some  anxiety  in  regard 
to  his  subalterns,  whose  purses,  never  very  well  filled,  were  now 
completely  drained  by  the  exorbitant  prices  exacted  for  every  sort 
of  domestic  stores  needed  for  a  long  march  through  the  wilderness. 
He  said  nothing  of  his  intention,  but  the  next  morning  wrote  to  a 
committee  of  the  Pennsylvania  assembly,  who  had  still  in  hand 


150  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

some  part  of  an  appropriation  for  military  purposes,  warmly  recom 
mending  the  condition  of  these  officers  to  their  consideration,  and 
proposing  that  a  present  should  be  sent  them  of  necessaries  and 
refreshments. 

By  characteristically  adroit  means,  which  are  detailed  in  his 
autobiography,  he  succeeded  in  obtaining  from  the  counties  of  Lan 
caster,  York,  and  Cumberland,  the  one  hundred  and  fifty  wagons, 
with  four  horses  to  each  wagon,  and  fifteen  hundred  saddle  or  pack 
horses,  needed  for  the  expedition ;  and  the  committee  of  the  assem 
bly  did  not  hesitate  to  forward  to  the  camp  as  soon  as  possible  the 
generous  supplies  he  requested  for  the  comfort  of  the  inferior 
officers  of  Dunbar's  and  Halket's  regiments.  In  the  opinion  of  the 
army  Franklin  almost  redeemed  the  character  of  the  American 
people.  He  and  Washington  met  at  Fredericktown  for  the  first 
time ;  and  these  two  were  the  only  natives  of  the  country  for 
whom  Braddock  had  a  word  of  praise  in  his  despatches.* 

Soon  after  Franklin  left  the  camp  at  Fredericktown  the  army 
marched  in  divisions  by  various  routes  for  Fort  Cumberland  at 
Will's  Creek.  Colonel  Dunbar's  regiment  was  in  advance,  and  at 
noon,  on  the  tenth  of  May,  wrhen  within  a  few  miles  of  its  destina 
tion,  was  overtaken  by  the  general.  He  preserved  on  all  occasions 
as  much  as  circumstances  permitted  of  the  state  belonging  to  his 
rank  in  Europe,  and  now  rode  in  a  chariot  which  he  had  purchased 
of  Governor  Sharp e,  with  his  staff  accompanying  him,  and  his  guard 
of  light  horse  galloping  before  and  in  the  rear,  A  little  after  one 
o'clock  he  reached  Will's  creek,  and  was  saluted  with  seventeen 
guns  from  the  fort. 

*  General  Braddock  writes  of  the  principal  service  here  rendered  by  Franklin,  "It  is  almost  the 
only  instance  of  address  and  integrity  which  I  have  seen  in  all  these  provinces."  For  the  provisions, 
&c.,  sent  to  the  subalterns,  both  Colonel  Dunbar  and  Sir  Peter  Halket  wrote  that  "  the  gentlemen 
whom  the  committee  have  been  so  good  as  to  think  of  in  so  genteel  a  manner  return  their  hearty 
thanks."  Mr.  Sparks  states  that,  "when  Franklin  returned  to  Philadelphia,  the  house  of  assembly 
was  in  session,  and  unanimously  passed  a  vote  of  thanks  '  to  Benjamin  Franklin,  a  member  of  this 
house,  for  the  great  services  done  to  the  king's  forces,  and  to  this  province,  in  his  late  journey 
through  Maryland  and  our  back  counties.'  It  should  be  added,  also,"  Mr.  Sparks  continues,  "  that 
no  profit  on  his  own  account  was  either  expected  or  leceived.  On  the  contrary,  after  General  Brad- 
dock's  death,  the  owners  of  the  wagons  and  horses  came  upon  Franklin  for  their  pay,  amounting  in 
all  to  nearly  twenty  thousand  pounds;  and  he  was  much  embarrassed  with  these  claims,  till  they 
were  finally  allowed  and  settled  by  General  Shirley,  who  succeeded  Braddock  in  the  command." 


;ET.  23.]  THE  MUSTER  AT  FORT  CUMBERLAND.  151 

The  next  day  notice  was  given  that  the  general  would  hold  a 
levee  at  his  tent  every  morning  between  ten  and  eleven ;  and,  on 
the  twelfth,  the  Indians  who  had  been  awaiting  his  arrival — one  of 
whom  was  Monacatoocha,  the  successor  of  Tanacharisson — were 
received  with  military  honors,  and  such  formalities  and  displays  as 
it  was  thought  would  impress  them  most  strongly  with  a  sense  of 
English  power  and  magnificence.  At  the  end  of  the  interview,  in 
which  Braddock  addressed  them  through  an  interpreter  some  flat 
teries  and  promises,  there  was  a  discharge  of  all  the  artillery,  and 
in  the  evening,  at  their  own  camp,  about  two  miles  distant,  a  feast 
was  provided,  by  his  direction,  and  they  had  a  war  dance,  which  was 
seen  by  a  few  of  the  foreign  officers  with  as  much  wonder  as  the 
Indians  had  felt  at  the  martial  exhibition  in  the  afternoon. 

The  force  assembled  at  Will's  creek  amounted  to  more  than  two 
thousand  effective  men.  The  regiments  of  Halket  and  Dunbar, 
embracing  together  when  they  landed  about  one  thousand,  had 
been  increased  to  fourteen  hundred  by  picked  additions  from  the 
provincial  levies,  and  besides  these  there  were  the  two  independent 
companies  from  New  York,  five  companies  of  rangers  and  two  of 
carpenters  or  pioneers  from  Virginia,  one  company  of  rangers  from 
Maryland,  one  company  of  rangers  from  North  Carolina,  one  com 
pany  from  South  Carolina,  and  thirty  seamen,  under  a  lieutenant  of 
the  navy,  furnished  by  Admiral  Keppel,  having  four  pieces  of  cannon, 
which  they  were  to  assist  in  dragging  over  the  mountains.  The 
colonial  troops  were  regarded  by  the  regulars  as  of  little  importance. 
u  They  performed  their  evolutions  and  firings  as  well  as  could  be 
expected,"  Captain  Orme*  wrote  in  his  journal,  "  but  their  languid, 
spiritless,  and  unsoldierlike  appearance,  considered  with  the  lowness 

*  Kobert  Orme,  of  Devonshire,  author  of  the  "  Journal"  from  which  are  derived  a  large  proportion 
of  the  particulars  now  known  of  Braddoc.k's  Expedition,  became  a  lieutenant  in  the  Coldstream 
Guards  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  April,  1754.  He  was  on  very  intimate  terms  with  Braddock,  and 
before  coming  to  this  country  had  "made  some  noise  in  London  by  an  affair  of  gallantry."  Hero 
he  produced  a  very  favorable  impression  on  all  with  whom  he  came  in  contact.  Soon  after  the 
affair  near  Fort  Duquesne,  in  which  he  was  wounded,  he  returned  to  England,  and  in  October,  1756, 
resigned  his  commission,  and  married  Audrey  Townshend,  only  daughter  of  Lord  Townshend,  and 
sister  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Koger  Townshend,  who  fell  at  Ticonderoga  in  1759,  as  well  as  of 
George,  afterwards  first  Marquis  Townshend,  who  succeeded  General  Wolfe  on  the  capture  of 
Quebec.  —  Winthrop  Sargent's  History  of  Braddock's  Expedition,  p,  283. 


152  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY  [1755. 

and  ignorance  of  most  of  their  officers,  gave  little  hope  of  their  fu 
ture  good  behavior."  Among  these  officers  were  Adam  Stephen,  the 
Chevalier  de  Peyroney,  William  Poison,  and  several  others,  who  had 
fought  by  the  side  of  Washington  at  Fort  Necessity.  Hugh  Mercer, 
a  Scotchman,  who  had  been  with  the  pretender,  Charles  Edward,  at 
the  battle  of  Culloden,  and  who  subsequently,  with  Stephen,  served 
under  Washington  as  a  brigadier  general,  in  the  revolution,  was  a 
surgeon.  One  of  the  wagoners  was  Daniel  Morgan,  a  native  of  New 
Jersey,  who  after  working  two  years  as  a  day  laborer  in  Virginia  had 
been  able  with  his  accumulated  earnings  to  buy  a  team,  with  which 
he  attached  himself  to  a  troop  raised  in  that  province.  A  difficulty 
occurred  between  his  commander  and  a  brutal  athlete  who  accom 
panied  the  army,  and  it  was  agreed  that  they  should  settle  it  by  per 
sonal  combat.  The  captain  stepped  out  to  meet  his  antagonist,  when 
Morgan  came  up  and  said,  "  You  must  not  fight  that  man."  "  Why 
not  ?"  "  Because,  you  are  our  captain,  and  if  the  fellow  were  to  whip 
you  we  should  all  be  disgraced ;  but  I  will  fight  him,  and  if  he  whips 
me  it  will  not  hurt  the  credit  of  the  company."  The  officer  remon 
strated,  but  feeling  the  impropriety  of  placing  himself  on  a  level 
with  such  a  creature,  at  last  consented  to  the  arrangement,  and 
young  Morgan,  then  only  nineteen,  gave  the  muscular  and  well 
trained  pugilist  so  severe  a  beating  that  he  could  not  rise  from  the 
ground.  Though  rude,  he  was  as  sagacious  and  manly  as  he  was 
brave,  and  by  such  acts  he  acquired,  at  this  early  period,  a  reputation 
which  assured  his  future  greatness.  Thomas  Gage,  afterwards  com 
mander  in  chief  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  and  the  last  royal 
governor  of  Massachusetts,  was  a  lieutenant  colonel  in  Halket's 
regiment,  and  Horatio  Gates,  who  became  a  major  general  in  the 
revolution,  was  captain  of  one  of  the  independent  companies  from 
New  York. 

Braddock's  expectations  in  regard  to  the  Indians  were  disap 
pointed.  The  French,  since  the  surrender  of  Fort  Necessity,  had 
labored  assiduously  and  successfully  to  alienate  them  from  the 
English ;  but  a  small  number  of  fighting  men  were  at  any  time  in 
the  camp,  and  these  were  discontented,  and  soon  withdrew.  Mona- 


JE.T  23.]  CAPTAIN  JACK.  H3 

catoocha  offered  the  common  excuse  for  such  conduct :  "  the  great 
general/'  he  said,  "  looked  upon  us  as  dogs,  and  would  never  hear 
anything  that  was  said  to  him ;  we  often  endeavored  to  advise  him 
and  to  tell  him  the  danger  he  was  in  with  his  soldiers ;  but  he  never 
appeared  pleased  with  us ;  and  that  was  the  reason  a  great  many 
of  our  warriors  left  him,  and  would  not  be  under  him."  Another 
cause  of  trouble  was  that  the  British  officers  "  were  scandalously  fond 
of  their  women."  Monacatoocha,  and  eight  of  his  followers,  were 
all  who  continued  at  Fort  Cumberland  until  the  march  was  recom 
menced. 

Braddock  appears  to  have  been  little  inclined  to  connect  with 
the  army  any  parties  who  would  not  submit  themselves  entirely  to 
military  regulations.  He  was  a  soldier  of  the  schools,  a  man  of 
routine,  a  martinet,  and  from  education  and  age  incapable  of  adapt 
ing  himself  to  the  novel  exigencies  of  American  warfare.  He 
therefore  treated  the  offers  of  service  which  were  made  by  back 
woodsmen,  willing  to  fight  only  in  their  own  way,  with  the  same 
indifference  which  had  wounded  the  pride  of  the  Indians.  A  well 
known  character,  called  Captain  Jack,  the  Wild  Hunter  of  the 
Juniata,*  proposed  upon  easy  conditions  to  furnish  scouts.  Settling 
many  years  previously  on  the  extreme  frontier,  he  had  returned 
one  evening,  from  a  hunt,  to  look  upon  the  ashes  of  his  home  and 
the  charred  bodies  of  his  murdered  wife  and  children.  From  that 
hour  he  was  controlled  by  an  insatiable  thirst  for  revenge,  and  the 
Indians  of  western  Pennsylvania  dreaded  him  more  than  any  other 
enemy.  He  led  his  band  into  the  camp  armed  and  equipped  with 
rifles,  knives,  hunting  shirts,  leggings,  and  moccasins,  and  having 
asked  an  interview  with  the  general,  requested  that  they  should  be 
employed  as  a  reconnoitering  party  to  start  the  savages  from  their 
ambuscades.  Braddock  answered  that  there  was  time  enough  for 
such  arrangements,  and  that  he  had  experienced  troops  on  whom 

*  In  Mr.  Winthrop  Sargent's  History  of  Braddock's  Expedition,  and  in  Hazard's  Pennsylvania 
Register,  there  are  some  interesting  particulai-s  of  this  person's  history.  "  On  one  occasion,  near  the 
Juniata,  in  the  middle  of  a  dark  night,  a  family  were  suddenly  awaked  from  sleep  by  the  report  of  a 
gun ;  they  jumped  from  their  beds,  and  by  the  glimmering  light  from  the  chimney  saw  an  Indian 
fall  in  the  pains  of  death.  The  open  door  exposed  to  view  the  wild  hunter.  '  I  have  saved  your 
lives/  he  cried,  then  turned,  and  was  buried  in  the  gloom." 


154  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

he«  could  rely  for  all  purposes.  The  Indian  hater  was  offended  at  a 
reception  so  forbidding,  and  on  retiring  from  the  commander's  tent 
led  his  associates  back  into  the  forests. 

The  character  and  condition  of  the  army  at  this  period  was 
sketched  by  Mr.  Shirley,  the  general's  secretary,  in  a  letter  to 
Governor  Morris.  He  writes,  "  We  have  a  general  most  judiciously 
chosen  for  being  disqualified  for  the  service  he  is  employed  in,  in 
almost  every  particular,"  and  thinks  it  a  great  error  to  suppose  the 
good  qualities  of  inferior  officers  can  make  up  for  the  deficiencies 
of  a  commander  in  chief.  "  The  mainspring,"  he  continues, "  must  be 
the  mover ;  others,  in  many  cases,  can  do  no  more  than  follow  and 
correct  a  little  its  motions.  As  to  them,  I  do  not  think  we  have 
much  to  boast ;  some  are  ignorant  and  insolent ;  some  capable,  but 
rather  aiming  to  show  their  abilities  than  to  make  a  proper  use  of 
them.  I  have  a  very  great  love  for  my  friend  Orme,  and  think  it 
uncommonly  fortunate  for  our  leader  that  he  is  under  the  influence 
of  so  honest  and  competent  a  man,  but  I  wish,  for  the  sake  of  the 
public,  he  had  a  little  more  experience  of  business,  especially  in 
America.  As  for  myself,  I  came  out  of  England  expecting  that  I 
might  be  taught  the  business  of  a  military  secretary;  but  I  am 
already  convinced  of  my  mistake.  I  wrould  willingly,  however, 
think  my  time  may  not  be  quite  lost  to  me.  You  will  think  me 
out  of  humor.  I  own  I  am  so.  I  am  greatly  disgusted  at  seeing 
an  expedition  so  ill  concerted  originally  in  England,  and  so  ill  ap 
pointed,  so  improperly  conducted  in  America,  and  so  much  fatigue 
and  expense  incurred  for  a  purpose  which,  even  if  attended  with 
success,  might  better  have  been  left  alone.  I  speak  with  regard  to 
our  peculiar  share  of  it...  I  am  likewise  further  chagrined  at 
seeing  the  prospect  of  affairs  in  America,  which,  when  we  were  at 
Alexandria,  I  looked  upon  as  great  and  promising,  through  delays 
and  disappointments  which  might  have  been  prevented,  grown 
cloudy,  and  in  danger  of  ending  in  little  or  nothing."* 

Before  the  march  from  Fredericktown  Washington  had  been  sent 
to  Williamsburg  to  obtain  four  thousand  pounds  for  the  military 

*  Colonial  Records  of  Pennsylvania,  vi.,  404. 


/Er.  23.]  BRADDOCK'S  DINNER  PARTIES.  155 

chest.  The  commission  was  executed  in  a  satisfactory  manner,  and 
on  the  thirtieth  of  May  he  rejoined  the  army  at  Will's  creek.  The 
general  was  still  complaining  of  breaches  of  contract,  and  denounced 
the  country  as  destitute  of  honor.  "  On  this  head,"  writes  Wash 
ington,  "we  have  frequent  disputes,  which  are  maintained  with 
warmth  on  both  sides,  especially  on  his,  as  he  is  incapable  of 
arguing  without  it,  or  giving  up  any  point  he  asserts,  be  it  ever  so 
incompatible  with  reason  or  common  sense."  The  horses  and  wag 
ons  hired  by  Franklin  began  now,  however,  to  come  in  every  day, 
with  liberal  supplies  of  forage  and  provisions,  and  he  grew  amia 
ble.  At  his  table,  which  was  served  by  two  excellent  cooks  whom 
he  had  brought  from  England,  he  maintained  the  generous  hospi 
tality  which  became  his  rank.  Here  Washington  met  the  distin 
guished  persons  who  visited  the  camp,  and  had  pleasant  intercourse 
with  his  friends  Shirley  and  Orme.  The  other  aid,  Roger  Morris, 
he  does  not  often  mention,  and  it  is  probable  that  he  was  less  inti 
mate  with  him.  Some  philosophers  might  suggest  that  he  was 
separated  by  a  natural  repulsion  from  one  who  was  three  years 
after  to  be  his  successful  rival  for  the  heart  of  the  great  heiress, 
Mary  Philipse,  of  New  York, 


150'  WASHINGTON;    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

LOITERING NEWS    OF    REINFORCEMENTS    OF  THE    FRENCH MARCH    FROM  WILL'S 

CREEK SUPERFLUOUS  CAMP   EQUIPAGE SAVAGE    MOUNTAIN  AND  THE  SHADES 

OF    DEATH COUNCIL    AT    THE    LITTLE  MEADOWS IT  ADOPTS    SUGGESTIONS  BY 

WASHINGTON DIVISION  OF    THE    ARMY ILLNESS    OF    WASHINGTON HIS    COR 
RESPONDENCE    WITH    THE  OTHER  AIDS    DE  CAMP HALTS  AT  FORT  NECESSITY 

REJOINS    THE    COMMANDER    IN    CHIEF INCIDENTS    OF  THE    MARCH TRACES  OF 

THE  ENEMY INDIAN  MURDERS FUNERAL   OF    THE    SON    OF    MONACATOOCHA 

CHRISTOPHER  GIST CAMP  ON  THE  MONONGAHELA. 

TWENTY-SEVEN  days  had  been  passed  in  the  march  of  the  army 
from  Alexandria  to  Will's  creek.  Here  it  was  detained  three  weeks. 
This  loitering  and  delay  were  fatal.  On  the  sixth  of  June  intelli 
gence  was  received  that  a  party  of  three  hundred  Frenchmen  had 
passed  Oswego  on  their  wTay  to  Fort  Duquesne,  and  that  another 
and  larger  detachment  was  expected  to  follow  every  moment. 
There  were  other  accounts  of  the  departure  of  five  hundred  men 
from  Canada  for  the  same  destination.  "  We  have  reason  to  be 
lieve,"  Washington  wrote  to  William  Fairfax,  "that  we  shall  have 
more  to  do  than  to  go  up  the  hills  and  come  down." 

From  Will's  creek  to  the  Ohio  is  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty  miles.  On  the  thirtieth  of  May  six  hundred  men  under  Sir 
John  St.  Clair  and  Major  Chapman  were  sent  forward  to  open  the 
roads  and  convey  provisions  to  the  Little  Meadows.  Sir  Peter  Hal- 
ket  followed  with  his  regiment  on  the  seventh  of  June,  Lieutenant 
Colonel  Burton  with  the  independent  companies  and  rangers  on 
the  eighth,  and  Colonel  D unbar  with  his  brigade  on  the  tenth.  The 
same  day,  after  seeing  the  last  company  on  the  march,  General 
Braddock  set  out  with  his  staff  and  body  guard.  Fort  Cumberland, 
with  the  hospital,  filled  with  invalids,  was  left  under  the  care  of 
Colonel  Innes. 


JET.  23.]  RETRENCHMENTS  IN  EQUIPAGE.  157 

The  advance  over  the  rough  road,  with  wagons  loaded  with  un 
necessary  luggage  and  camp  equipage  as  well  as  with  munitions  and 
supplies,  was  difficult  and  slow.  Eememhering  his  own  experience 
in  crossing  the  mountains,  with  men  divested  of  everything  not 
indispensable,  Washington  had  anticipated  that  the  movement  of 
the  train  would  be  "  tedious,  very  tedious  indeed."  On  the  twelfth 
the  general  appears  to  have  arrived  at  a  similar  conclusion,  and, 
calling  together  his  officers,  he  informed  them  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  continue  the  march  without  some  change  in  this  re 
spect,  "  which  he  was  persuaded  they  would  readily  assist  in,  as  they 
had  hitherto  evinced  the  greatest  spirit  and  inclination  for  the  ser 
vice."  He  recommended  their  sending  back  to  the  fort  all  such  prop 
erty  as  was  not  absolutely  necessary;  gave  assurances  that  if  any 
of  them  having  horses  in  good  condition  would  spare  them  for  the 
public  benefit  he  would  see  that  such  evidence  of  their  regard  for  it 
was  not  forgotten,  and  set  an  example,  with  his  family,  by  contrib 
uting  twenty,  which  had  such  an  influence  that  many  of  the  officers 
gave  up  their  own  tents,  and  made  use  of  those  of  the  soldiers,  for 
the  rest  of  the  way,  and  nearly  a  hundred  of  the  best  animals  in 
the  camp  were  yielded  for  the  common  advantage.  But  there  was 
still  a  great  deal  of  superfluous  furniture  of  various  sorts  retained, 
by  gentlemen  whose  European  training  had  failed  to  prepare  them 
for  the  self  denials  demanded  in  this  wilderness  warfare,  and  in  a 
letter  written  on  the  fourteenth  Washington  expressed  fears  that 
the  number  of  wagons  would  prove  an  insurmountable  obstacle  to 
the  success  of  the  expedition.  They  formed  a  line  three  or  four 
miles  long,  with  soldiers  so  dispersed  for  their  defence  that  any 
attack  would  have  thrown  them  into  confusion.  Passing  the  great 
Savage  Mountain,  and  the  gloomy  pine  forest  known  as  the  Shades 
of  Death,  they  reached  the  Little  Meadows,  but  twenty-four  miles 
from  Will's  creek,  at  the  end  of  ten  days.  Here  there  was  a  second 
council,  at  which  the  general  appealed  to  the  officers  for  a  still 
further  retrenchment  of  their  effects,  and  Washington,  to  encour 
age  the  rest,  gave  up  his  best  horse,  which  he  tells  us  he  never 
heard  of  afterwards,  and  reserved  no  more  clothing  than  half 


158  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

enough  to  fill  his  portmanteau.  Before  the  council  assembled  "  the 
general/'  writes  Washington  to  his  brother,  "asked  my  private 
opinion  concerning  the  expedition.  I  urged  him  in  the  warmest 
terms  I  was  able  to  use,  to  push  forward,  even  if  he  did  it  with  a 
small  but  chosen  band,  with  such  artillery  and  light  stores  as  were 
necessary,  leaving  the  heavy  guns,  baggage,  and  the  like,  with  the 
rear  division  of  the  army,  to  follow  by  slow  and  easy  marches, 
which  they  might  do  with  safety  while  wre  were  advanced  in  front." 
He  vindicated  this  advice  by  referring  to  information  in  their  pos 
session  of  the  weakness  of  the  garrison  at  Fort  Duquesne,  and  of 
reinforcements  hourly  expected  for  its  support.  These  reinforce 
ments  could  not  in  his  opinion  pass  from  the  Erie  to  the  Ohio,  with 
a  necessary  quantity  of  provisions  and  other  supplies,  until  the  exces 
sive  drought  then  prevailing  should  be  ended  by  such  a  fall  of  rain 
as  would  render  possible  their  transportation  down  the  river  Le 
Boeuf.  By  a  quick  movement,  therefore,  it  was  probable  that  the 
fort  might  be  reached,  with  enough  troops  to  carry  it,  before  the 
arrival  of  the  aid  sent  from  Canada ;  but  if  this  policy  should  not 
be  adopted,  such  were  the  delays  attending  the  advance  of  the 
whole  army,  that  rains  sufficient  to  make  the  river  navigable  might 
reasonably  be  anticipated,  and  the  entire  force  of  the  enemy  would 
be  collected  for  their  reception:  a  circumstance  likely  to  invest 
the  undertaking  with  extreme  difficulties  or  quite  prevent  its  suc 
cess.  The  proposed  blow,  to  be  effective,  must  be  struck  at  once. 

The  suggestions  of  the  young  aid  de  camp  accorded  with  the 
temper  of  the  commander  in  chief  and  were  approved  by  the  coun 
cil,  and  immediate  measures  were  taken  for  carrying  them  into 
execution.  On  the  eighteenth  a  strong  body  of  pioneers  was  sent 
forward  to  prepare  the  roads,  and  on  the  nineteenth  the  general 
marched  with  the  first  division,  consisting  of  twelve  hundred  men, 
besides  officers,  selected  from  the  different  companies,  and  furnished 
with  eight  pieces  of  artillery,  provisions  for  thirty-five  days,  on  pack- 
horses,  and  less  than  thirty  carriages,  including  those  which  con 
tained  the  ammunition,  all  with  strong  teams.  The  second  division, 
with  the  remaining  stores,  munitions,  and  equipage,  was  to  follow 


jET.  23.]  ILLNESS  ON  THE  MARCH.  159 

under  Colonel  Dunbar.  Washington  contemplated  with  "infinite 
delight"  the  prospect  of  a  forced  and  rapid  march,  but  this  prospect 
was  soon  clouded,  and  his  hopes  "  brought  very  low  indeed,"  when 
he  found  that  instead  of  pushing  on  vigorously,  without  regarding 
a  little  rough  road,  there  were  halts  to  level  every  molehill  and 
erect  bridges  over  every  brook,  so  that  four  days  were  spent  in 
getting  to  the  Youghiogany,  a  distance  of  only  twelve  miles. 

Since  the  fourteenth  Washington  had  suffered  from  a  violent 
fever  and  pain  in  the  head,  which  continued  without  intermission 
until  the  twenty-third,  when  he  was  relieved  by  the  general's  order 
ing  the  physician  to  give  him  James's  powders,  which  he  describes 
as  "  one  of  the  most  excellent  medicines  in  the  world,"  with  some 
reason,  as  it  induced  immediate  ease,  and  in  four  days  assured  his 
convalescence.  His  illness  had  been  so  severe  that  he  could  not 
support  himself  in  the  saddle,  and  the  jolting  of  the  covered  wagon 
to  which  he  was  removed  was  soon  found  to  be  unendurable.  He 
was  therefore,  by  the  advice  of  Dr.  Craik,  and  the  imperative  orders 
of  General  Braddock,  left  at  the  Youghiogany,  with  the  doctor  and  a 
servant,  a  guard,  and  some  necessaries,  to  await  the  approach  of 
Colonel  Dunbar's  detachment,  which  was  two  days  in  the  rear :  the 
general  pledging  his  word  of  honor  in  the  most  solemn  manner 
that  he  should  be  brought  forward  before  the  advanced  division 
reached  the  Ohio.  Colonel  Dunbar  came  up  on  the  twenty-second, 
and  he  proceeded  with  his  division,  by  slow  stages,  and  not  without 
considerable  pain  from  frequent  shocks  received  by  the  vehicle  in 
passing  over  the  rugged  road.  On  the  twenty-fourth  Captain 
Morris  wrote  to  him  that  there  would  be  a  halt  of  two  or  three 
days  at  the  Great  Meadows,  and  added,  "It  is  the  desire  of 
every  individual  in  the  family,  and  the  general's  positive  command 
to  you,  not  to  stir  but  by  the  advice  of  the  person  under  whose 
care  you  are,  till  you  are  better,  which  we  all  hope  will  be  very 
soon."  On  the  thirtieth  Washington  wrote  to  his  friend  Orme,  "  My 
fevers  are  very  moderate,  and,  I  hope,  near  terminating.  Then  I  shall 
have  nothing  to  encounter  but  my  weakness,  which  is  excessive, 
and  the  difficulty  of  getting  to  you,  arising  therefrom ;  but  this  I 


1GO  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

would  not  miss  doing  before  you  arrive  at  Fort  Duquesne  for  five 
hundred  pounds."  The  next  day,  the  first  of  July,  he  received 
from  Orme  an  account  of  the  incidents  of  the  march,  with  intima 
tions  that  the  army  was  in  excellent  spirits,  and  that  the  French 
were  evidently  very  much  alarmed.  On  the  second,  Colonel  Dun- 
bar's  division  was  at  the  Great  Meadows,  where  he  saw  what  M.  de 
Yilliers  had  suffered  to  remain  of  Fort  Necessity,  and  on  the  third 
he  set  out  in  a  covered  wagon,  accompanied  by  Dr.  Craik,  and  with 
an  escort  of  one  hundred  men,  guarding  also  a  supply  of  provisions,  to 
rejoin  the  commander  in  chief,  which  he  succeeded  in  accomplishing 
on  the  eighth,  at  the  junction  of  the  Youghiogany  with  the  Monon- 
gahela — having  been  detained  in  the  rear  nearly  two  weeks. 

The  march  of  the  advanced  division  of  the  army  meanwhile 
had  been  impeded  by  numerous  obstacles.  On  one  occasion  the 
company  of  sailors  were  compelled  to  lower  the  wagons  from  a 
precipitous  hill,  with  ropes ;  and  the  horses,  feeding  on  wild  grass,  or 
browsing  among  the  shrubs,  for  want  of  forage,  became  too  weak 
to  drag  them,  unless  very  slowly,  over  even  the  best  parts  of  the 
road. 

The  day  following  that  on  which  Washington  and  Dr.  Craik  had 
been  left  by  the  Youghiogany,  a  camp  was  discovered  apparently  just 
abandoned  by  a  party  of  nearly  two  hundred  Indians  and  French 
men,  and  the  neighboring  trees,  stripped  of  their  bark,  were  found 
covered  with  threats,  bravadoes,  and  scurrilous  taunts.  From  vari 
ous  causes  there  were  continual  fears  of  ambuscades.  One  morning 
three  men  who  had  ventured  beyond  the  sentinels  were  shot,  and 
their  scalps,  two  days  afterwards,  were  found  painted  with  signs  of 
triumph  on  the  trunks  of  trees,  where  many  Frenchmen  had  in 
scribed  their  names  with  insolent  expressions. 

The  single  spies  and  small  detachments  of  the  enemy  prowling 
through  the  woods  were  so  numerous  and  so  adroit  in  eluding 
efforts  for  their  discovery  that  the  few  Indians  who  had  been  re 
tained  in  the  army  by  a  prodigal  use  of  presents,  became  unwilling 
to  act  as  scouts.  Monacatoocha  and  his  son,  wandering  one  day 
a  short  distance  from  the  line  of  march,  were  surrounded  and  cap- 


jET.  23.]  INCIDENTS  OF  THE  MARCH.  1G1 

tured.  The  son  escaped,  informed  the  warriors  of  the  half  king  of 
his  misfortune,  and  they  hastened  to  rescue  or  revenge  him.  The 
French  had  threatened  to  kill  him,  but  their  savage  allies,  connected 
with  the  chief  by  some  tie  of  kindred  or  friendship,  declared  that 
if  the  design  were  persisted  in  they  would  join  the  English.  It  was 
therefore  agreed  to  leave  him  tied  to  a  tree,  and  in  this  condition 
he  was  discovered  by  his  followers. 

After  the  capture  of  Monacatoocha  the  few  Indians  attached  to 
the  expedition  seemed  very  unwilling  to  act  as  scouts,  but  on  the 
fourth  of  July  two  of  them  consented  to  reconnoitre  in  the  direction 
of  the  fort,  and,  without  knowing  that  he  would  do  so,  shortly  after 
their  departure  Christopher  Gist,  who  had  been  with  Washington 
the  previous  year,  and  who  now  acted  as  guide  to  General  Brad- 
dock,  set  off  on  a  similar  errand.  The  Indians  returned  after  an 
absence  of  two  days,  bringing  the  scalp  of  a  French  officer  whom 
they  declared  they  had  killed  while  he  was  shooting  within  half  a 
mile  of  his  quarters.  They  said  they  had  seen  very  few  footprints, 
very  few  men,  and  no  additional  fortifications ;  from  all  which  it 
was  inferred  that  not  many  of  the  enemy  were  out  upon  observa 
tion.  Mr.  Gist  came  in  a  few  hours  later  in  the  same  day,  and  his 
report  corresponded  very  nearly  with  that  of  the  Indians.  He  had 
however  perceived  smoke  in  a  valley  between  the  camp  and  the 
fort,  and  while  endeavoring  in  the  night  to  get  a  closer  view  of  the 
latter,  had  been  discovered,  pursued,  and  in  imminent  danger  of 
being  made  a  prisoner. 

On  the  sixth,  after  a  march  of  less  than  seven  miles,  three  or  four 
men  loitering  in  the  rear  were  shot  and  scalped.  They  were  so 
near  that  the  general  heard  the  sound  of  muskets,  and  sent  back  a 
company  of  grenadiers  to  ascertain  what  had  happened.  Some 
friendly  Indians  were  soon  after  seen  in  advance,  and  though  they 
gave  the  proper  countersign — holding  up  boughs  and  grounding 
arms — in  the  excitement  of  the  moment  they  were  believed  to  be 
enemies,  and  fired  upon.  One  of  them,  a  son  of  Monacatoocha, 
was  killed.  As  soon  as  the  mistake  was  known  the  body  of  the 
young  chief  was  brought  to  the  general,  who  immediately  ordered 


162  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

the  army  to  halt  and  encamp ;  and  sending  for  the  father  and  his 
friends,  he  expressed  to  them  his  regret  on  account  of  the  melan 
choly  occurrence,  gave  them  presents  of  expiation,  and,  as  soon  as 
proper  arrangements  could  be  made,  caused  the  heir  of  the  half 
king  to  be  buried  with  military  honors.  The  funeral  was  attended 
by  the  officers,  and  a  volley  was  fired  over  the  grave.  The  tact 
thus  displayed  by  Braddock  had  more  than  its  anticipated  effect. 
It  was  apprehended  that  this  misfortune  would  quite  alienate  the 
remaining  Indians,  but  these  exhibitions  of  sympathy  and  respect 
were  so  gratifying  that  they  became  more  than  ever  attached  to 
the  English. 

On  the  seventh  and  eighth  the  advanced  division  of  the  army 
proceeded  twenty  miles,  and  encamped  the  last  of  these  days  not  far 
from  the  Monongahela  river,  and  in  the  neighborhood  of  Frazier's 
trading  house  and  the  village  of  Queen  Aliquippa.  Here,  as  has 
been  stated,  Washington  rejoined  the  staff,  after  an  extremely 
fatiguing  journey.  He  was  cordially  received  by  his  friends,  but 
had  little  time  for  idle  gratulations.  Exhausted  as  he  was,  by  illness 
and  weariness,  he  entered  without  delay  upon  inquiries  and  discus 
sions  respecting  the  plan  of  operations  which  had  been  adopted 
before  his  arrival.  Generally  the  officers  and  the  troops  were 
elated  with  the  assurance  of  an  easy  triumph  over  the  French,  but 
Sir  Peter  Halket  is  said  to  have  evinced  doubt  and  anxiety  on  the 
subject,  and  his  feelings  were  perhaps  shared  by  Secretary  Shirley.* 
Sir  John  St.  Clair  suggested  that  a  detachment  should  attempt  to 
invest  the  fort  that  night,  but  so  many  objections  were  urged  that 
the  project  was  not  submitted  to  the  general.  Had  it  been  exe 
cuted,  however,  it  would  probably  have  prevented  the  next  day's 
catastrophe.  A  party  of  Indians,  who  had  abandoned  the  expedi 
tion  some  time  previously,  in  consequence  of  the  slight  consideration 
with  which  they  were  treated,  during  the  evening  came  into  the 
camp  and  renewed  the  offer  of  their  services.  Washington  under 
took  to  negotiate  between  them  and  Braddock.  He  urged  their 

*  Winthrop  Sargent  on  the  Expedition  against  Fort  Duqueene,  p.  214.  History  of  the  War,  by 
Bntick,  i.  145. 


Mr.  23.]  SPECULATIONS  OF  THE  FRENCH.  163 

knowledge  of  the  ground,  their  skill  in  forest  warfare,  and  their 
value  as  guards  and  scouts.  But  the  general  peremptorily  refused 
to  have  anything  to  do  with  them.  He  declared  the  disdain  he 
felt  for  such  allies,  and  his  confidence  in  well  trained  and  veteran 
soldiers,  under  all  circumstances,  dismissing  the  overture  in  a  man 
ner  as  ungracious  as  it  was  determined.*  All  ambuscades  would 
have  been  harmless  if  a  dozen  Indians  had  preceded  the  army 
after  it  crossed  the  Monongahela. 

In  the  French  fortress  there  had  been  alarm,  daily  increasing, 
and  the  commandant  was  near  deciding  upon  a  retreat.  Accounts 
received  from  his  scouts  had  greatly  exaggerated  the  strength  of 
the  English,  and  he  cherished  no  hope  of  successfully  resisting  it. 
In  a  council  of  war,  however,  he  heard,  from  his  most  experienced 
and  able  officers,  a  diversity  of  opinions,  and  finally  resolved  to 
maintain  his  position  as  long  as  possible,  and  if  compelled  to  sur 
render,  to  do  so  upon  honorable  terms. 

*  Sparks's  Washington,  i.  70. 


164  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

THE  NINTH  OF   JULY ANTICIPATIONS  OF  VICTORY FRANKLIN  IN    DOUBT  ON    THE 

SUBJECT THE  ARMY  IN  CAMP MOVEMENT  OF  THE  ADVANCE THE  MAIN  BODY 

IN    ORDER    OF    MARCH WASHINGTON'S    DESCRIPTION  OF  IT AN  AMBUSCADE 

PANIC    OF    THE     REGULARS BRAVERY    OF    THE    PROVINCIALS UNPARALLELED 

COURAGE BRADDOCK  BEHAVES  LIKE  A  HERO NOBLE  CONDUCT  OF  WASHING 
TON HE  IS  PRESERVED  BY  PROVIDENCE THE  COMMANDER  IN  CHIEF  MOR 
TALLY  WOUNDED ENTIRE  ROUT  OF  THE  ARMY THE  RETREAT BRADDOCK's 

DEATH    AND    BURIAL COWARDICE    AND    FLIGHT    OF    D UNBAR WASHINGTON'S 

LETTERS    TO    HIS    FRIENDS THE    POWER   OF    ENGLAND    IN    AMERICA    BROKEN 

PROPHECY  OF  THE  REV.  SAMUEL  DAVIES. 

THE  ninth  of  July,  1755,  was  one  of  the  most  important  days  in 
American  history,  and  one  of  the  most  interesting  in  the  life  of 
Washington.  It  was  expected  with  hope,  but  no  proud  anticipations 
were  equal  to  the  great  results  with  which  it  was  crowned  by  an 
allwise  and  beneficent  though  mysterious  Providence. 

Beyond  the  camp?  in  which  \Yashington,  and  his  companions  in 
previous  expeditions,  observed  the  temper  and  conduct  of  the  com 
mander  in  chief  with  such  apprehensions  as  were  justified  by  their 
own  experience,  scarcely  a  doubt  was  entertained  in  all  British 
America  of  the  easy  and  complete  success  of  the  attempt  to  drive 
the  French  from  the  valley  of  the  Ohio.  In  Philadelphia,  New 
York,  and  Boston,  intelligence  from  Fort  Duquesne  was  looked  for, 
not  with  anxiety  respecting  the  result,  but  only  as  a  signal  for  pub 
lic  rejoicings.  In  the  former  city  the  doctors  Bond,  two  gentlemen 
of  leading  influence  in  society,  called  on  Benjamin  Franklin  with 
a  subscription  paper  for  raising  money  to  defray  the  expense  of  a 
grand  display  of  fireworks,  to  be  made  on  receiving  news  of  Gen 
eral  Braddock's  victory.  The  printer  looked  grave,  and  said  it 
would  in  his  opinion  be  time  enough  to  prepare  the  rejoicing  when 


^T.  23.]  LAST  MARCH  OF  BRADDOCK.  165 

they  knew  they  should  have  occasion  to  rejoice.  His  visitors 
seemed  to  be  surprised  that  he  did  not  at  once  comply  with  their 
proposal.  "Why,  the  devil!"  said  one  of  them,  "you  surely  don't 
suppose  that  the  fort  will  not  be  taken?"  "I  don't  know  that  it 
will  not  be  taken/'  he  answered,  with  characteristic  caution,  "but  I 
know  that  the  events  of  war  are  subject  to  great  uncertainty."  He 
gave  them  reasons  for  having  some  doubts  in  the  case,  and  the  sub 
scription  was  dropped.* 

The  English  camp  was  a  little  below  the  place  where  the  Yough- 
iogany  falls  into  the  Monongahela,  and  fifteen  miles  from  the  fort, 
at  the  confluence  of  the  latter  river  with  the  Alleghany.  Both  the 
fort  and  the  camp  were  within  these  arms  of  the  Ohio.  A  portion  of 
the  road  between  them  was  narrow,  with  the  river  on  one  side  and 
a  steep  mountain  on  the  other,  and  in  so  bad  a  condition  as  to  be 
impassable  for  carriages.  It  had  therefore  been  determined  to  cross 
the  Monongahela  by  a  shallow  ford  near  the  camp,  proceed  along 
its  west  bank  about  five  miles,  and  recross  it  by  another  ford, 
between  which  and  the  fort  there  were  no  considerable  obstruc 
tions. 

Before  daylight  Lieutenant  Colonel  Gage  marched  with  two  com 
panies  of  grenadiers,  two  companies  of  infantry,  and  Captain  Gates's 
independent  company,  containing  together  three  hundred  and  fifty 
men,  with  directions  to  halt  beyond  the  second  ford,  which  they 
were  to  guard  until  it  should  be  passed  by  the  main  body ;  at  four 
o'clock  he  was  followed  by  Sir  John  St.  Clair  with  a  working 
party  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  men,  to  prepare  the  roads  for  the 
artillery  and  baggage  wagons ;  and  at  eight  the  general,  accom 
panied  by  his  aids,  Orme,  Morris,  and  Washington — the  latter  still 
so  ill  that  it  wTas  with  difficulty  he  kept  his  place  in  the  saddle  — 
set  out  with  the  remainder  of  the  army,  which,  on  gaining  the  west 
side  of  the  river,  formed  in  proper  marching  order.  It  was  a 
delightful  summer  morning.  The  troops,  though  enfeebled  by  toil 
and  unwholesome  food,  were  in  excellent  spirits,  and  confident  of  an 
approaching  triumph.  Dressed  in  their  showy  and  brilliant  uniforms, 

*  Franklin's  Works,  i.,  194. 


166  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

with  their  burnished  arms  gleaming  in  the  bright  sun,  they  moved 
in  regular  columns,  to  the  sound  of  martial  music,  between  the 
placid  river  and  the  deep  overshadowing  forest.  Washington  was 
often  heard  to  say  in  after  years  that  they  presented  at  this  hour 
the  most  beautiful  spectacle  he  had  ever  seen.  About  ten  the  gen 
eral  received  from  Gage  a  despatch  in  which  it  was  stated  that  he 
had  repassed  the  Monongahela,  without  interruption,  and  posted 
himself  as  commanded. 

By  two  o'clock  the  several  parts  of  the  army  were  reunited  on 
the  east  side  of  the  river,  and  the  line  of  march  was  again  formed, 
Gage  and  St.  Clair  being  in  advance,  with  guides  and  flanking 
parties,  and  the  general  following  with  the  artillery  and  baggage 
and  the  rest  of  the  forces.  Suddenly  a  heavy  fire,  with  a  wild  and 
terrible  Indian  war  cry,  was  heard  in  front.  Advised  by  his  scouts 
of  Braddock's  progress,  M.  Contrecoeur,  who  was  still  in  charge  of 
Fort  Duquesne,  had  decided  in  council  the  previous  evening  his  plan 
of  operations.  Captain  Beaujeu,  an  enterprising  and  fearless  officer, 
had  proposed  an  ambuscade,  and  been  intrusted  with  its  execution. 
With  two  hundred  and  thirty  French  and  Canadians,  and  between 
six  and  seven  hundred  Indians,  he  intended  to  dispute  the  passage  of 
the  second  ford,  but  arrived  too  late,  and  posted  himself  in  an  open 
wood,  filled  with  prostrate  trees,  bushes,  and  high  grass,  near  the  bor 
der  of  an  undulating  plateau,  above  the  river.  His  attack  was  furi 
ous,  and  as  unexpected  as  lightning  from  a  cloudless  sky.  It  was 
received  by  the  forward  companies  of  the  detachment  under  Gage, 
who,  instead  of  supporting  them,  sent  to  the  general  for  orders,  and 
by  his  indecision  made  certain  the  disasters  of  the  afternoon.  The 
onset  was  met  courageously,  but  the  enemy  poured  a  murderous 
fire  from  places  in  which  they  were  perfectly  concealed,  and  Gage's 
men  returned  it  almost  at  random,  and  with  very  little  effect.  They 
were  thrown  into  a  panic  by  the  strangeness  of  their  situation. 
Gage  attempted  to  rally  them  for  a  charge  with  the  bayonet ;  but 
no  foe  was  to  be  seen,  while  bullets  flew  among  them  like  tempest 
driven  hail,  and  all  commands  were  unheeded.  He  was  soon 
wounded,  and  they  retreated  in  dismay,  until  stopped  by  a  rein- 


JEr.  23.]          BATTLE  OF  THE  MONONGAHELA.  167 

forcement  of  eight  hundred  men  under  Lieutenant  Colonel  Burton, 
which  the  general  had  promptly  ordered  to  their  assistance.  These 
caught  the  alarm,  and  the  two  regiments  were  mixed  in  inextricable 
confusion,  among  the  trees  and  tangled  underbrush,  through  which 
only  practised  woodsmen  could  easily  find  a  way. 

The  general  had  despatched  an  aid  de  camp  for  particular  infor 
mation,  but  without  awaiting  his  return,  started  himself,  and  now 
came  up  to  share  the  danger  and  animate  the  troops.  The  artillery, 
advancing  along  the  road,  began  to  play  with  energy,  and  though 
it  did  little  execution  upon  the  hidden  enemy,  the  Indians  for  a 
moment  suspended  their  fire ;  the  French  leader,  De  Beaujeu,  was 
killed ;  the  English  raised  shouts  of  victory  ;  but  Dumas,  who  suc 
ceeded  De  Beaujeu,  infused  new  life  into  his  followers,  and  the  tide 
turned  again.  Sending  the  savages  to  assail  their  flanks,  while  with 
his  French  and  Canadians  he  kept  up  the  attack  in  front,  they 
continued  between  two  and  three  hours  with  the  utmost  ardor  yet 
with  the  coolest  judgment,  from  behind  large  trees  and  from  the 
edge  of  a  ravine,  to  shoot  down  the  terror  stricken  English. 

The  provincial  companies  alone  seemed  to  retain  their  senses. 
Scattering  themselves  through  the  forest,  they  fought  according  to 
the  Indian  manner,  each  governed  by  his  own  opportunity  and 
discretion.  The  general  would  not  suffer  the  regulars  to  follow 
their  example.*  He  endeavored  to  form  them  into  platoons  and 
columns,  but  merely  succeeded  in  grouping  them  so  that  the  French 
and  Indian  marksmen  were  able  without  difficulty  to  effect  their 
destruction.  They  kept  up  an  irregular  and  aimless  fire,  but  their 
friends  suffered  from  it  more  than  their  enemies.  Under  the  cir 
cumstances  there  was  but  one  means  of  success ;  this  was  a  quick 
and  determined  charge  with  the  bayonet  by  all  the  infantry,  which 
would  have  started  the  foe  from  their  cover,  and  reversed  the  ad 
vantages  ;  but  it  was  not  attempted. 

*  "  The  enemy  kept  behind  trees  and  logs  of  wood,  and  cut  down  our  troops  as  fast  as  they  could 
advance.  The  soldiers  then  insisted  much  to  be  allowed  to  take  to  the  trees,  which  the  general 
denied,  and  stormed  much,  calling  them  cowards ;  and  even  went  so  far  as  to  strike  them  with  his 
own  sword  for  attempting  the  trees." — Letter  of  Major  James  Burd  to  Governor  Morris  :  Colonial 
Records  of  Pennsylvania,  vi.,  501. 


168  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

Braddock's  errors  as  a  general  were  of  the  judgment  only,  and 
fruits  of  his  education.  Washington  had  strongly  advised  him  on 
his  arrival  in  the  camp,  the  previous  evening,  to  keep  scouts  and 
guards  in  advance  and  on  the  wings  of  his  army,  who  would  have 
saved  him  from  this  surprise,  and  all  its  consequences ;  but  he  had 
a  contempt  for  Indian  warfare  and  an  absurd  confidence  in  the 
prowess  of  veteran  soldiers.  In  these  hours  of  carnage  he  proved 
the  injustice  of  a  taunting  jest  wrhich  his  delays  had  caused  to  be 
current  in  London,  that  he  "  was  not  at  all  impatient  to  be  scalped." 
His  bravery  and  undauntedness  were  never  surpassed.  His  secre 
tary,  acting  as  an  aid,  fell  dead  by  his  side ;  Morris  and  Orme  were 
wounded  and  borne  to  the  rear;  Sir  Peter  Halket  and  other  field 
officers  were  killed  \  three  fourths  of  his  guard  of  cavalry  were 
slain  before  his  eyes ;  and  five  horses  were  disabled  under  him ;  but 
still  he  persevered  in  desperate  efforts  to  win  the  day.  All  the 
officers,  so  far  as  we  know,  exhibited  the  most  admirable  gallantry ; 
but  the  troops  were  ungovernable ;  their  faculties  were  palsied  by 
fear  and  horror.  To  Washington,  early  in  the  engagement,  was  left 
the  whole  duty  of  distributing  the  general's  orders.  As  if  uncon 
scious  of  his  illness,  or  of  the  perils  with  which  he  was  surrounded, 
he  rode  from  place  to  place  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight.  Two  horses 
were  killed  under  him,  and  four  bullets  passed  through  his  coat ; 
but,  to  the  astonishment  of  all,  he  escaped  unhurt,  though  every 
other  officer  on  horseback  was  either  killed  or  wounded.  "  I  ex 
pected  every  moment,"  said  his  friend  Dr.  Craik,  "  to  see  him  fall. 
Nothing  but  the  superintending  care  of  Providence  could  have 
saved  him  from  the  fate  of  all  around  him."  An  Indian  chief, 
whose  attention  was  arrested  by  his  daring  and  activity,  fired  at 
him  several  times,  and  directed  his  warriors  to  do  so,  but  saw  with 
wonder  that  none  of  their  balls  took  effect.  Persuaded  that  he 
was  under  the  protection  of  some  potent  Manitou  he  ceased  to 
make  him  a  target  for  their  skill.  "Death,"  Washington  himself 
wrote  to  his  brother,  "  was  levelling  my  companions,  on  every  side 
of  me  ;  but,  by  the  all  powerful  dispensations  of  Providence,  I  have 
been  protected." 


JET.  23.]          BATTLE  OF  THE  MONONGAHELA.  169 

It  was  near  five  o'clock  when  Lieutenant  Colonel  Burton,  having 
assembled  about  one  hundred  men  who  retained  sufficient  repose 
and  courage  for  another  effort,  was  commanded  by  General  Brad- 
dock  to  take  possession  of  an  eminence,  on  the  right,  from  which 
the  enemy  had  directed  a  constant  and  galling  fire.  This  was  the 
last  attempt  to  continue  the  battle,  and  was  unsuccessful.  Burton 
was  disabled,  and  his  men  came  back  in  disorder.  At  this  moment 
the  general  was  mortally  wounded,  by  a  ball  which  passed  through 
his  right  arm  into  his  side,  and,  as  he  fell  from  his  horse,  was  caught 
by  Captain  Stewart,  of  his  guards,  who,  assisted  by  a  member  of 
his  company,  and  a  servant,  placed  him  in  a  wagon  that  they  might 
bring  him  off  the  ground.  This  was  against  his  will.  Seeing  the 
completeness  of  his  overthrow,  and  his  unavoidable  disgrace,  he 
would  have  died  there.  He  had  already  ordered  a  retreat,  but  it 
was  too  late  to  retreat  with  any  regularity.  The  British  troops, 
"  by  one  common  consent,"  writes  Orme,  "  left  the  field,  running  off 
with  the  greatest  precipitation.  The  officers  used  all  possible  en 
deavors  to  stop  the  men,  and  to  prevail  upon  them  to  rally,  but  a 
great  number  of  them  threw  away  their  arms,  and  even  their 
clothes  to  escape  the  faster."  The  provincials  were  the  last  to  turn 
from  the  scene.  "  The  Virginia  companies,"  Washington  wrote  to 
Governor  Dinwiddie,  "  behaved  like  men,  and  died  like  soldiers ;  for, 
I  believe,  of  three  companies  on  the  ground,  scarce  thirty  men  were 
left  alive.  Captain  Peyroney,  and  all  his  officers,  down  to  a  cor 
poral,  were  killed.  Captain  Poison  had  almost  as  hard  a  fate,  for  only 
one  of  his  escaped.  In  short,  the  dastardly  conduct  of  the  regular 
troops,  so  called,  exposed  those  who  were  inclined  to  do  their  duty 
to  almost  certain  death ;  and,  at  length,  in  spite  of  every  effort  to 
the  contrary,  they  broke,  and  ran  as  sheep  before  hounds,  leaving 
the  artillery,  ammunition,  baggage,  provisions,  and,  in  short,  every 
thing,  a  prey  to  the  enemy;  and  when  we  endeavored  to  rally 
them,  in  hopes  of  regaining  the  ground  and  what  we  had  left  upon 
it,  it  was  with  as  little  success  as  if  we  had  attempted  to  stop  the 
wild  bears  of  the  mountains." 

Until  now  very  few  of  the  enemy  had  been  seen.     Some  of  the 


170  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

officers  declared  that  during  the  entire  engagement  they  did  not  see 
a  Frenchman  or  an  Indian.  But  when  the  guns  of  the  English  were 
all  silenced,  and  the  rout  became  complete,  they  left  their  hiding 
places  and  gave  themselves  up  to  pillage,  and  so  were  prevented 
from  following  the  fugitives,  though  a  few  continued  the  pursuit  to 
the  river. 

About  a  quarter  of  a  mile  beyond  the  ford  there  was  a  halt. 
Less  than  a  hundred  men,  of  the  army  which  at  one  o'clock  had 
passed  that  way  so  exultingly,  could  now  be  collected  around  their 
dying  leader.  It  was  hoped  that  an  advantageous  position  here 
might  be  held  until  reinforcements  should  be  summoned  from  Fort 
Cumberland.  But  before  the  end  of  an  hour  nearly  all  these  men 
resumed  their  flight,  leaving  the  general,  and  his  surviving  officers, 
many  of  whom  were  also  wounded,  to  continue  their  retreat  in  the 
best  manner  they  could  devise. 

A  consultation  was  held,  which  resulted  in  the  general's  despatch 
ing  Washington  to  Colonel  D unbar,  with  orders  to  send  hospital 
stores,  provisions,  and  wagons  for  the  wounded,  under  a  guard  of 
two  companies  of  grenadiers,  to  meet  him  at  Gist's  plantation,  or 
nearer  if  possible.  The  general  was  in  extreme  pain,  which  was 
increased  by  the  manner  in  which  he  had  thus  far  been  conveyed, 
and  after  Dr.  Craik  had  dressed  his  wounds,  he  would  have  mounted 
his  horse,  but  was  unable  to  do  so,  and  was  carried  by  the  soldiers, 
closely  attended  by  the  surgeon,  and  Captain  Stewart,  who  left  him 
scarcely  a  moment  during  the  march.  His  aids,  Orme  and  Morris, 
were  placed  on  litters,  borne  by  horses.  When  they  had  proceeded 
a  few  miles  they  were  joined  by  Lieutenant  Colonel  Gage,  who  had 
succeeded  in  rallying  nearly  eighty  men.  The  melancholy  company 
kept  on  their  inarch  all  night.  The  general  spoke  only  once,  and 
then  but  ejaculated,  "  Who  would  have  thought  it !"  The  next  day 
he  was  equally  silent,  merely  saying,  as  if  not  quite  despairing  of 
life,  "  We  shall  know  better  how  to  deal  with  them  another  time !" 
In  the  evening  they  reached  Gist's  place,  where  they  were  met  by 
Washington,  with  supplies.  Here,  for  the  first  time,  they  rested. 
On  the  morning  of  the  eleventh  they  went  on  to  Dunbar's  camp, 


o 
Si 


JET.  23.]  RESULTS  OF  THE  BATTLE.  173 

duct  of  the  regular  troops  as  "  dastardly ;"  to  his  mother  he  wrote 
that  "  they  behaved  with  more  cowardice  than  it  is  possible  to  con 
ceive  ;"  to  his  brother,  that  they  had  been  "scandalously  beaten  by  a 
trifling  body  of  men ;"  and,  a  few  days  after,  to  Mr.  Robert  Jackson, 
"  We  have  been  beaten!  shamefully  beaten  by  a  handful  of  men  who 
only  intended  to  molest  and  disturb  our  march !  Victory  was  their 
smallest  expectation.  But  see  the  wondrous  works  of  Providence, 
the  uncertainty  of  human  things !  we,  but  a  few  moments  before, 
believed  our  numbers  almost  equal  to  the  entire  force  of  Canada ; 
they,  only  thought  to  annoy  us ;  yet,  contrary  to  all  expectation 
and  probability,  and  even  to  the  common  course  of  things,  we  were 
totally  defeated,  and  have  sustained  the  loss  of  everything." 

Whatever  of  horror  or  despair  gathered  with  the  darkness  about 
its  close,  no  day  had  yet  dawned  more  surely  auspicious  of  American 
independence  than  this  memorable  ninth  of  July.  Intelligence  of 
the  slaughter  flew  fast  through  all  the  inhabited  parts  of  the  country, 
creating  among  people  of  every  condition  the  profoundest  conster 
nation.  It  was  regarded  as  decisive  of  the  fall  of  the  British 
empire  in  America ;  and  in  one  sense  it  was  so ;  but  the  overthrow 
of  this  empire  was  not  to  be  accomplished  by  the  servants  of  Louis 
the  Fifteenth.  They  who  look  for  the  hand  of  God  in  history  will 
no  where  find  it  more  distinctly  visible  than  over  this  field  of  death. 
Dieskau  was  speedily  to  yield  before  the  militia  of  Massachusetts, 
Connecticut,  and  New  Hampshire,  at  Lake  George;  and  a  few 
months  later,  on  the  plains  of  Abraham,  Wolfe,  by  the  last  and 
most  masterly  exhibition  of  his  military  genius,  was  to  destroy  for 
ever  the  dominion  of  France  in  this  part  of  the  continent.  But 
after  the  battle  of  the  Monongahela  the  power  of  England  over  her 
own  children  here  was  broken.  There  was  no  longer  confidence  in 
the  prowess  of  British  regular  troops.  It  was  felt  and  understood 
that  the  colonies  must  take  care  of  themselves.  If  a  stamp  act,  such 
as  was  advocated  by  Dinwiddie,  Sharpe,  Shirley,  and  other  royal 
governors,  for  the  collection  -of  revenue  with  which  to  support  a 
British  army,  could  have  been  carried  into  execution  before,  it  was 
not  to  be  doubted  that  any  measure  of  this  kind  would  now  be 


174  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

resisted  with  stubborn  indignation.  No  more  of  the  king's  troops 
were  wanted.  At  least,  from  this  time  they  were  not  held  to  be 
worth  the  price  asked  for  them.  Had  the  results  of  the  expedition 
to  the  Ohio  been  different,  it  may  be  doubted  whether  America 
would  have  had  that  confidence  in  her  ability  to  cope  with  England 
which  was  a  necessary  condition  of  the  revolution  that  in  the  next 
twenty  years  grew  continually  more  probable. 

Washington  rode  amidst  this  havoc  as  safely  as  the  three  Hebrews 
walked  in  the  furnace  upon  the  plains  of  Dura.  He  was  not  more 
distinguished  by  his  bravery  than  by  his  judgment.  Everything 
that  was  not  lost,  he  saved.  His  conduct  was  celebrated  in  all  the 
colonies,  and  was  praised  as  universally  as  it  was  known.  He 
reaped  only  honor  from  a  field  of  disgrace.  No  conceivable  com 
bination  of  circumstances  could  have  been  more  favorable  to  his 
reputation.  Had  the  battle  ended  in  victory,  his  displays  of  the 
most  consummate  valor  would  but  have  added  to  the  laurels  of 
the  commander  in  chief.  Ending  in  defeat,  which  without  him 
would  have  been  annihilation,  the  faults  of  all  who  were  engaged 
in  it  seemed  to  increase  the  splendor  of  his  indefectible  conduct. 
"Never,"  writes  Mr.  Everett,  "did  victorious  consul  return  to  repub 
lican  Rome,  loaded  with  the  spoils  of  conquered  provinces,  with 
captive  thousands  at  his  chariot  wheels,  an  object  of  greater  confi 
dence  and  respect,  than  Washington,  at  the  close  of  two  disastrous 
campaigns,  from  one  of  which  he  was  able  to  save  his  regiment 
only  by  a  painful  capitulation,  in  the  other  barely  escaping  with  his 
life  and  the  wrecks  of  the  army."  On  the  seventeenth  of  the 
following  month,  the  Reverend  Samuel  Davies,  afterwards  president 
of  Princeton  college,  in  a  sermon  entitled,  "  Religion  and  Patriotism 
the  Constituents  of  Good  Soldiers,"  preached  to  a  company  of  vol 
unteers,  raised  in  Hanover  county,  Virginia,  made  use  of  the  mem 
orable  words,  "As  a  remarkable  instance  of  martial  fire,  I  may 
point  out  to  the  public  that  heroic  youth,  Colonel  Washington, 
whom  I  cannot  but  hope  Providence  has  hitherto  preserved,  in  so 
signal  a  manner,  for  some  important  service  to  his  country."* 

*  Sermons  on  Important^  Subjects,  by  Samuel  Dnvies,  A.  M.,  iii.  47. 


23.]         NEW  ENGLAND  AND  THE  SOUTH.  175 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

OTHER  EXPEDITIONS NEW  ENGLAND  AND  THE  SOUTHERN  AND  WESTERN  COLONIES 

COMPARISONS  UNFAVORABLE  TO  THE  LATTER  BY  WASHINGTON  AND  SHIRLEY 

RELATIONS  OP  GREAT  BRITAIN  AND  FRANCE CAPTURE  OF  THE  ALCIDE  AND  THE 

LYS THE  ACADIANS BEAU  SEJOUR  TAKEN POETRY  AND  HISTORY ABSURD 
ITY  OF  COMMON  REPRESENTATIONS  OF  THE  NEUTRAL  FRENCH  AND  THEIR  SUF 
FERINGS PROVINCIAL  ARMY  AT  LAKE  GEORGE DEFEAT  OF  DIESKAU SHIR 
LEY  FAILS  TO  REACH  NIAGARA. 

THE  other  expeditions  announced  at  Alexandria  were  composed 
of  provincial  troops,  and  were  successful  except  where  their  failure 
resulted  from  that  of  the  commander  in  chief.  In  every  period  of 
our  colonial  history  the  people  of  New  England  displayed  a  degree 
of  patriotic  liberality  and  heroism  hardly  known  in  the  western  and 
southern  parts  of  the  country.  When  the  congress  of  governors 
met  General  Braddock  at  his  camp  on  the  Potomac,  Washington 
illustrated  his  sensibility  upon  this  point  in  a  letter  to  William 
Fairfax.  Mentioning  Governor  Shirley,  he  wrote,  "  I  heartily  wish 
the  same  unanimity  may  prevail  among  us  that  seemed  to  exist 
between  him  and  his  assembly,  when  they,  to  expedite  the  public 
business  and  forward  his  journey  hither,  sat  till  eleven  and  twelve 
o'clock  every  night."  Shirley  himself,  about  the  same  time,  repre 
sented  the  matter  strongly  to  the  ministers.*  Enterprises  were  on 
foot  before  the  arrival  of  Braddock  which  would  have  settled  every 
dispute  with  the  French  in  1Y55,  "  if  the  five  most  western  colonies 
had  exerted  themselves  for  their  own  defence,"  as  Massachusetts 
and  other  parts  of  New  England  "  had  done  for  the  general  service." 
But  while  Massachusetts  had  raised  four  thousand  and  five  hundred 
men,  and  the  other  three  governments  east  of  the  Hudson  had 

*  Letter  to  Sir  Thomas  Robinson.  Documents  relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  New  York, 
vi.,  943. 


376  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  []?55. 

voted  two  thousand  and  one  hundred  more  for  an  attack  on  Crown 
Point,  the  colonies  bordering  on  the  Ohio  and  the  great  lakes, 
"after  being  harassed  by  a  dangerous  and  increasing  enemy  at 
their  doors,  after  suffering  two  defeats  from  them,  though  more 
populous  and  much  richer  than  those  of  New  England,"  had  not 
produced  above  eleven  hundred  men  for  the  protection  of  their 
wives  and  children,  and  the  houses  in  which  they  lived. 

The  French  had  evinced  a  settled  determination  to  make  them 
selves  masters  of  this  continent.  They  anticipated  success  from  a 
system  of  profound  duplicity.  But  the  inconsistency  of  their  pro 
testations  with  their  proceedings  in  America  was  too  apparent  to 
escape  detection  by  intelligent  observers  of  affairs,  and  open  war 
would  have  resulted  but  for  the  incapacity  and  temporizing  policy  of 
the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  administration.  The  establishment  of  the 
posts  on  the  Ohio  was  clearly  aggressive  under  the  treaty  of  Aix  la 
Chapelle.  The  occupation  of  the  works  commenced  by  the  English 
at  the  junction  of  the  Monongahela  with  the  Alleghany,  and  the  cap 
ture  of  Fort  Necessity,  were  acts  of  war,  and  whether  the  parent 
states  chose  to  preserve  or  to  interrupt  relations  of  peace  in  Europe, 
a  decent  respect  for  the  dignity  of  the  empire  made  it  necessary  for 
the  ministers  in  London  to  provide  for  the  defence  of  the  boundaries 
of  her  provinces.  As  soon  as  it  was  known  in  Paris  that  General 
Braddock  had  sailed  for  Virginia  an  attempt  was  made  to  check  the 
proposed  operations  of  this  officer  by  new  assurances  of  amicable  pur 
poses  on  the  part  of  France.  When  however  the  ambassador,  the 
Marquis  de  Mirepoix,  submitted  to  the  British  cabinet  the  declarations 
of  his  sovereign,  their  insincerity  was  shown  by  abundant  evidences, 
and  he  hastened  home  to  complain  of  having  been  made  an  instru 
ment  of  dissimulation.  Mirepoix  was  a  weak  though  an  honorable 
man.  The  king  subdued  the  irritation  of  his  feelings,  and  sent  him 
back  to  London  with  still  further  assertions  of  friendly  dispositions, 
which  it  was  believed  would  prolong  the  inactivity  of  the  British 
government.  But  it  was  too  late  for  such  resorts.  The  foreign 
secretary  exhibited  to  him  indisputable  proofs  that  a  powerful 
squadron  was  nearly  ready  to  leave  Brest  for  the  St.  Lawrence,  and 


^Er.  23.]  EXPEDITION  TO  NOVA  SCOTIA.  ]?7 

soon  afterwards  news  was  received  of  its  departure,  with  a  great 
quantity  of  military  stores,  and  an  army  of  four  thousand  men, 
commanded  by  the  veteran  and  distinguished  Baron  Dieskau.* 
Under  these  circumstances,  though  in  sending  General  Braddock 
to  America  the  ministers  had  avowed  an  intention  only  to  resist  en 
croachments,  it  was  deemed  proper  to  despatch  Admiral  Boscawen 
to  watch  the  motions  of  the  enemy's  ships ;  and  on  the  seventh  of 
June,  near  the  southern  point  of  Newfoundland,  he  came  up  with 
three  of  them,  the  Alcide,  the  Lys,  and  the  Dauphin,  which  had 
been  separated  from  the  rest,  and  after  a  short  engagement  captured 
the  Alcide  and  the  Lys.f  Dieskau,  with  the  Marquis  de  Yaudreuil,| 
successor  of  the  Marquis  Duquesne,  governor  general  of  New 
France,  a  few  days  afterwards  arrived  in  Quebec. 

On  the  twentieth  of  May,  while  General  Braddock  was  slowly  ad 
vancing  towards  the  Ohio,  three  thousand  men  embarked  at  Boston 
for  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  to  drive  the  French  from  disputed  territory, 
beyond  the  Messagouche  and  east  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  which  was 
claimed  as  a  part  of  Acadia,  by  the  English  named  Nova  Scotia. 

*  Baron  Dieskau  had  been  a  favorite  pupil  of  Saxe.  The  value  set  upon  his  abilities  is  shown 
by  his  salary.  He  received  twelve  thousand  livres  a  year  as  a  major  general,  and  twenty-five  thou 
sand  more  as  commander  in  chief  of  the  French  army  in  America. 

t  Captain  Eichard  Howe,  afterwards- Admiral  Lord  Howe,  distinguished  himself  in  this  action. 

J  Pierre  Eigaud,  Marquis  de  Vnudreuil-Cavagnac,  was  the  son  of  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil  who 
was  governor  of  Canada  from  1703  to  1725,  and  was  born  in  Quebec  in  1698.  He  had  served  in 
Canada  during  the  later  years  of  his  father's  administration,  and  had  been  governor  of  Louisiana 
from  1743  to  1753.  Mr.  Gayarre,  in  his  History  of  Louisiana,  gives  some  interesting  revelations  of 
his  character.  It  happened,  says  this  entertaining  historian,  that  one  of  his  servants  acted  with 
insolence  towards  an  officer  of  the  garrison  in  New  Orleans,  who  had  come  to  pay  his  respects  to  the 
governor  on  one  of  his  reception  days.  The  marchioness,  having  been  informed  of  the  fact,  brought 
it  to  the  knowledge  of  her  husband,  and  insisted  on  the  culprit's  being  dismissed.  De  Vaudreuil 
acquiesced  in  a  demand  which  he  thought  just,  and  consented  to  part  with  the  servant,  although  a 
favorite  one.  He  sent  for  his  purse,  and  after  having  paid  the  wages  due  to  the  man,  he  added  a 
bounty  of  three  hundred  livres.  His  wife  expostulated  with  him  on  this  strange  piece  of  liberality, 
and  observed  that  it  was  offering  a  reward  to  impertinence.  Unmoved,  and  without  returning 
an  answer,  the  marquis  threw  again  three  hundred  livres  to  the  lacquey,  and,  seeing  the  flush  of 
anger  rising  to  his  wife's  brow,  said  to  her,  with  the  greatest  composure,  "  Madam,  I  do  not  reward 
him  for  his  insolence,  but  for  his  faithful  past  services,  and  if  you  show  too  much  displeasure  to  the 
poor  devil,  I  will  give  him  the  whole  purse,  to  indemnify  him  for  his  having  incurred  the  mortifica 
tion  which  you  now  inflict  upon  him."  De  Vaudreuil  was  remarkable  for  grace  and  elegance  of 
person,  the  dignity  of  his  demeanor,  and  the  fascination  of  his  address,  and  was  fond  of  luxury, 
show,  and  pleasure.  Surrounded  by  a  host  of  brilliant  officers,  of  whom  he  was  the  idol,  he  lovod 
to  keep  up  a  miniature  court,  in  distant  imitation  of  that  of  Versailles.  He  carried  to  Canada  the 
same  tastes  and  habits,  relieving  the  gloom  of  war  with  magnificent  balls,  sumptuous  dinners,  and 
everything  that  could  be  devised,  calculated  to  attach  the  people  to  his  person,  or  to  render  life 
agreeable. — History  of  Louisiana:  the  French  Domination,  ii.  18,  66. 

12 


178  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

They  were  led  by  John  Winslow,  a  great  grandson  of  Edward  Wins- 
low,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  founders  of  Plymouth  colony, 
and  himself  a  man  of  eminent  respectability  and  popularity.  He 
held  the  rank  of  major  general  in  the  Massachusetts  militia,  but  acted 
in  the  present  expedition  as  a  lieutenant  colonel,  under  a  commission 
from  Governor  Shirley.  After  a  passage  of  eight  days  they  arrived 
at  Chignecto,  at  the  head  of  the  bay,  where  they  were  joined  by  three 
hundred  regulars,  with  a  train  of  artillery,  under  Colonel  Monckton, 
who  assumed  the  chief  command.  On  the  fourth  of  June,  after 
a  short  engagement,  they  forced  the  passage  of  the  Messagouche, 
defended  by  a  small  party,  with  a  few  pieces  of  cannon,  and  on  the 
twelfth  invested  the  fort  at  Beau  Sejour,  which  surrendered  on  the 
sixteenth,  on  condition  that  the  troops,  agreeing  not  to  bear  arms 
against  Great  Britain  for  six  months,  should  be  sent  to  Louisburg. 
The  fort  received  an  English  garrison,  and,  from  the  brother  of  the 
king,  who  was  captain  general  of  the  army,  was  named  Cumber 
land  :  an  honor  bestowed  on  the  most  southwestern  as  well  as  the 
most  northeastern  British  post  in  America.  An  inconsiderable 
force  at  Fort  Gaspereaux  soon  afterwards  capitulated  on  the  same 
terms  •  and  an  officer  sent  with  three  frigates  and  a  sloop  to  reduce 
St.  John's,  found  that  the  enemy  had  abandoned  and  burned  their 
works  there  and  left  the  country.  The  entire  province  of  Nova 
Scotia,  according  to  the  English  definition  of  its  boundaries,  was 
thus  conquered,  with  a  loss  of  but  twenty  men  killed,  and  about 
the  same  number  wounded. 

In  Acadia  were  made  the  first  European  settlements  in  this  part 
of  the  continent.  The  province  was  the  scene  of  frequent  contests 
between  the  French  and  English  until  finally  relinquished  to  Great 
Britain  by  the  treaty  of  Utrecht  in  1713.  Of  the  population,  con 
sisting  mainly  of  Breton  peasants,  we  know  very  little  except  that 
they  were  extremely  ignorant  and  superstitious.  It  was  agreed 
that  they  should  continue  to  hold  their  lands  if  they  would  take 
the  oath  of  fidelity  to  their  new  sovereign ;  this  they  refused  to  do, 
unless  excused  from  every  obligation  to  bear  arms  against  France. 
The  feeling  thus  displayed  was  natural  and  honorable,  but  the  favor 


JE.T.  23.]  REMOVAL  OF  THE  ACADIANS.  170 

was  an  extraordinary  one  to  be  asked  by  a  conquered  people.  The 
officer  in  command  of  the  British  forces,  however,  granted  it,  and, 
though  it  was  subsequently  disallowed  by  the  crown,  the  Acadians 
continued  to  claim  the  privileges  of  neutrality.  Yet  they  were 
never  neutral.  In  all  the  period  since  the  treaty  of  Utrecht  they 
had  continued  to  be  as  thoroughly  French,  in  feeling  and  conduct, 
in  language,  religion,  and  manners,  as  before  the  change  made  in 
their  political  relations.  They  had  been  ready  to  support  any 
movement  which  promised  to  restore  them  to  their  ancient  mas 
ters.  "Indulged  in  their  prejudices,  and  resigned  to  the  manage 
ment  of  priests,  who  were  instructed  by  the  bishop  of  Quebec,  from 
whom  they  derived  their  stipends,"*  "  they  had  secretly  courted  the 
visit  of  the  French  troops,  and  furnished  them  and  their  Indian  allies 
with  intelligence,  quarters,  and  every  assistance."^  Three  hundred 
of  their  young  men  were  taken  in  arms  at  Beau  Sejour.  Their 
lands  were  forfeited,  and  they  might  lawfully  as  well  as  justly  have 
been  ordered  to  leave  the  country-  but  if  permitted  to  go  where 
they  pleased  they  would  have  retired  to  Montreal  or  Louisburg,  and 
strengthened  the  enemy  in  those  places.  It  was  necessary  therefore 
to  overawe  them  by  a  strong  military  government,  or  transport 
them  to  the  southern  British  provinces ;  and,  after  a  careful  consid 
eration  of  the  subject,  the  latter  alternative  was  adopted.  The  duty 
of  effecting  their  removal  was  confided  to  General  Winslow. 

Poetry,  in  the  disguise  of  History,  and  in  her  proper  costume  and 
language,  has  celebrated  the  misfortunes  of  the  Acadians,  and  the 
inhumanity  alleged  to  have  been  exhibited  against  them  by  the 
British  authorities.  But  there  was  no  inhumanity  in  the  case. 
On  the  contrary,  no  subjugated  community  was  ever  treated  with 
more  generosity.  "  For  nearly  forty  years,"  writes  Mr.  Bancroft, 
"  no  tax  gatherer  counted  their  folds,  no  magistrate  dwelt  in  their 
harnlets."J  Bigoted  and  intolerant,  like  their  ancestors,  they  lis 
tened  with  enthusiasm  to  the  denunciations  which  their  priests  made 

*  Chalmers's  Introduction  to  the  History  of  the  Revolt  of  the  American  Colonies,  ii.  280. 
t  Williamson's  History  of  Maine.     Gayarre's  Louisiana. 
J  History  of  the  United  States,  iv.  194. 


180  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

against  the  heretics  who  had  possessed  themselves  of  the  country. 
"  Better/'  said  these  creatures,  "  surrender  your  meadows  to  the  sea, 
and  your  houses  to  the  flames,  than  at  the  peril  of  your  souls  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  British  government."* 

General  Winslow  knew  that  he  had  to  deal  with  an  enemy  en 
tirely  insensible  to  the  obligations  of  honor  or  gratitude,  and  the 
means  to  which  he  resorted  for  making  them  prisoners  were  suitable 
to  their  character  and  his  own  circumstances.  They  were  indeed 
the  only  means  by  which  it  was  possible  to  accomplish  his  purpose, 
and,  however  disagreeable,  in  no  way  deserving  of  censure.  The 
sufferings  of  the  Acadians  were  undoubtedly  very  great ;  and  it  has 
been  the  fortune  of  war  that  the  anguish  of  its  victims  could  never 
be  graduated  to  individual  deserts ;  but  in  this  case  it  appears  incon 
siderable  when  contrasted  with  that  which  its  subjects  themselves 
had  assisted  in  spreading,  as  with  a  tide  of  fire,  all  along  our  western 
borders,  for  nearly  a  dozen  years.  The  needless  cruelties  which 
marked  the  progress  of  this  protracted  contest  were  caused  by  the 
French,  who,  intent  upon  driving  the  English  from  the  vast  regions 
they  inhabited,  sent  the  remorseless  savages  under  their  control, 
with  the  tomahawk,  the  scalping  knife,  and  the  torch,  to  murder 
and  destroy,  without  regard  to  age  or  sex  or  condition,  the  unpro 
tected  settlers  on  the  British  frontiers  from  Canada  to  Georgia. 

The  troops  raised  in  New  England  for  the  expeditions  of  Gov 
ernor  Shirley  and  General  Johnson  were  nearly  all  assembled  in 
Albany  before  the  close  of  June,  but  were  detained  several  weeks 
from  active  operations.  General  Phineas  Lyman,  of  Connecticut, 
with  between  four  and  five  thousand  men,  in  July  inarched  to  a 
point  near  the  head  waters  of  the  Hudson  about  sixty  miles  north 
ward,  where  he  commenced  the  fortification  afterwards  known  as 
Fort  Edward.  Here  he  was  joined  by  General  Johnson  wrho  entered 
upon  the  chief  command,  and  on  the  twenty-second  of  August  it 
was  resolved  in  a  council  of  Avar  to  construct  a  military  road  as  far 
as  the  lake  of  the  Holy  Sacrament,  on  the  way  towards  Crown 
Point.  In  the  following  week  General  Johnson  advanced  with 

*  Bancroft :  History  of  the  United  States,  iv.  196. 


Mr.  23.]  CAPTURE  OF  DIESKAU.  181 

three  thousand  and  four  hundred  men  to  the  lake,  to  which,  in 
honor  of  the  king  and  in  assertion  of  his  right  of  dominion  there, 
he  gave  the  name  of  George ;  and  after  clearing  several  acres,  in 
the  midst  of  a  dense  forest,  where,  he  writes,  "never  was  house 
or  fort  erected  before,"  he  encamped  his  army. 

Baron  Dieskau,  soon  after  his  arrival  in  Montreal,  commenced 
vigorous  preparations  for  a  campaign.  He  determined  first  to 
reduce  Oswego,  and  had  already  sent  a  detachment  up  the  St.  Law 
rence,  for  that  destination,  when  intelligence  was  received  of  the 
danger  that  threatened  Crown  Point,  and  he  reluctantly  changed 
his  plans  to  ascend  the  Champlain.  Leaving  a  part  of  his  forces  to 
strengthen  that  post,  he  proceeded  with  about  two  thousand  French, 
Canadians,  and  Indians,  to  the  southern  extremity  of  the  lake,  and 
began  a  rapid  inarch  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Edward ;  but  wrhen 
within  four  miles  of  this  place,  the  Indians,  apprehensive  that  it  was 
defended  with  artillery,  refused  to  approach  any  nearer,  though 
willing  to  go  and  attack  the  main  body  of  the  army,  which  they 
supposed  was  without  cannon  or  entrenchments. 

Advised  of  his  approach,  Johnson,  on  the  morning  of  the  eighth, 
sent  back  a  thousand  men,  commanded  by  Colonel  Ephraim  Wil 
liams,  of  Massachusetts,  and  two  hundred  Mohawk  Indians,  under 
the  veteran  and  faithful  king  Hendrik,  to  relieve  Fort  Edward ;  but 
they  had  proceeded  only  four  miles  when  they  were  surprised  by 
Dieskau,  and,  after  a  short  engagement,  in  which  they  fought  with 
great  intrepidity,  compelled  to  retreat,  leaving  Colonel  Williams* 
and  the  Indian  sachem,  with  a  considerable  number  of  inferior 
officers  and  privates,  dead  on  the  ground.  Legardeur  de  St.  Pierre, 
who  had  received  Washington  the  previous  year  at  Fort  Le  Boeuf, 
and  who  accompanied  Dieskau  at  the  head  of  his  Indian  auxilia 
ries,  was  among  the  killed  of  the  other  side. 

*  Ephraim  Williams,  a  man  of  address  and  wit,  with  uncommon  military  talents  —  the  founder 
of  Williamstown  and  of  Williams  College,  in  Massachusetts  —  was  born  at  Newton,  in  that  colony, 
in  1715.  In  early  life  he  made  several  visits  to  Europe,  and  from  his  twenty-fifth  year  was  connected 
with  the  provincial  army.  As  if  having  a  presentiment  of  death,  while  passing  through  Albany,  on 
the  way  to  Johnson's  headquarters,  he  made  his  will,  by  which  he  endowed  with  a  considerable  por 
tion  of  his  property  a  free  school  for  western  Massachusetts,  since  grown  into  Williams  College. 
He  was  slain  in  the  fortieth  year  of  his  age. 


382  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

Johnson's  camp  was  protected  on  the  north  by  the  lake,  on  the  east 
and  west  by  heavily  wooded  swamps,  and  on  the  south  by  a  breast 
work  formed  of  the  trunks  of  trees  which  he  had  found  growing 
on  the  field  now  occupied  by  his  tents.  The  sound  of  musketry 
and  the  presence  of  fugitives  soon  warned  him  that  the  enemy  was 
not  far  off,  but,  hindered  in  various  ways,  they  came  forward  so 
slowly  that  the  alarm  caused  by  the  defeat  of  Colonel  Williams  had 
nearly  subsided,  and  several  cannon,  received  two  days  before  from 
Fort  Edward,  had  been  judiciously  mounted,  when,  a  little  before 
twelve  o'clock,  the  assault  was  commenced,  by  the  French  regulars, 
in  front,  seconded  by  the  Canadians  and  Indians  on  the  right  and 
left.  As  soon  as  the  artillery  began  to  play  the  Canadians  and 
Indians  fled  in  disorder,  and  Dieskau,  after  bravely  sustaining  the 
attack  for  four  hours,  was  compelled  to  order  a  retreat.  Johnson 
had  been  slightly  wounded  in  the  early  part  of  the  battle,  and  the 
command  had  devolved  upon  General  Lyman,  whose  good  marks 
men,  taking  deliberate  aim,  decimated  the  unflinching  French  regu 
lars  at  every  fire.  He  pursued  the  enemy  a  short  distance,  and 
succeeded  in  making  a  considerable  number  of  prisoners.  Those 
who  escaped  fled  to  Crown  Point.  Dieskau  had  received  three 
balls  in  different  parts  of  his  person,  and  an  attendant  was  killed 
while  endeavoring  to  assist  him  from  the  field.  Left  alone,  and 
attempting  to  support  himself  against  a  tree,  he  was  discovered, 
and,  in  the  act  of  exhibiting  his  watch,  in  the  hope  that  by  surren 
dering  it  he  might  secure  kind  treatment,  he  was  shot  through  the 
hips,  by  an  officer  who  thought  he  was  searching  for  a  pistol  with 
which  to  defend  himself. 

Towards  evening,  when  the  pursuit  had  been  discontinued,  the 
larger  portion  of  the  survivors  of  the  French  army  were  reunited 
near  the  scene  of  the  morning's  conflict,  where,  not  suspecting  an 
enemy  was  in  the  rear,  they  had  left  their  baggage  and  camp 
equipage.  While  unpacking  some  provisions  they  were  suddenly 
attacked  by  two  hundred  men,  under  Captain  McGinnes,  of  New 
Hampshire,  on  their  way  from  Fort  Edward  to  support  the  main 
body  of  the  provincials,  and  after  a  single  discharge  of  their  mus- 


MT.  23.]  BRADDOCK  AND  DIESKAU.  183 

kets,  by  which  McGinnes  was  killed,  they  again  fled  in  disorder, 
leaving  all  their  public  and  private  stores  in  possession  of  the 
victors. 

In  the  several  conflicts  which  occurred  during  the  day  the  loss 
of  the  British  provincials  was  about  two  hundred  and  sixteen  killed, 
and  ninety-six  wounded.  The  loss  of  the  French  was  variously 
estimated  at  from  six  hundred  to  one  thousand. 

The  exultation  of  the  French  at  their  triumph  on  the  Mononga- 
hela  was  checked  by  their  defeat  at  Lake  George.  In  the  first 
conflict  one  army  lost  its  commander  in  chief,  a  tried  and  popu 
lar  soldier  of  the  school  of  Marlborough ;  in  the  second,  the  other 
was  deprived  of  a  leader  who  had  been  the  favorite  pupil  and 
was  regarded  as  the  most  accomplished  of  the  disciples  of  Saxe.* 

*  Peter  Wraxall,  author  of  "  Records  of  Indian  Affairs  in  the  Colony  of  New  York  from  1678 
to  1751,"  and  aid  de  camp  to  General  Johnson,  describes  Dieskau  as  "  an  elderly  man,  and  very 
much  of  a  gentleman."  Johnson,  in  a  letter  to  Sir  Charles  Hardy,  dated  the  sixteenth  of  Septem 
ber,  says,  "  I  forwarded  this  day  the  French  general  and  his  aid  de  camp :  the  general  to  travel  in  a 
litter  or  batteau  to  Albany,  and  thence  to  New  York,  as  his  wounds  will  permit."  On  the  eighth 
of  October  Governor  Hardy  wrote  from  Albany  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  "  The  French  general  has 
been  here  some  time  under  cure,  is  somewhat  better,  and  has  desired  to  be  removed  to  New  York : 
I  shall  send  him  there  by  the  first  opportunity."  In  Parker  and  Weyman's  New  York  Gazette,  for 
the  twenty-ninth  of  October,  1755, 1  find  the  following  notice  of  his  arrival :  "  Baron  de  Dieskau,  the 
French  Major  General  taken  by  General  Johnson,  and  who,  by  Louis  of  France  is  allowed  a  pension 
of  four  thousand  livres  per  annum,  was  brought  down  prisoner  from  Albany  on  Monday  afternoon 
last,  to  this  city ;  and  about  nine  o'clock  at  night,  to  avoid  a  crowd  of  people  assembled  to  see  him, 
was  landed  and  carried  to  lodgings  prepared  for  him  in  Nassau  street,  where  he  now  lies  dangerously 
ill  of  his  wounds.  His  aid  de  camp  is  with  him."  After  lingering  some  time  in  New  York  Dieskau 
was  sent  to  England,  whence,  as  his  restoration  was  deemed  impossible,  he  was  permitted  to  retire, 
on  his  parole,  to  Germany,  at  one  of  the  spas  of  which  country  the  veteran  soldier  lived  several 
years,  a  sufferer  from  his  wounds,  of  which  he  finally  died. 

The  designs  entertained  by  Dieskau  before  the  battle  are  stated  very  distinctly  by  Captain  Henry 
Babcock,  of  Connecticut,  in  a  letter  to  the  Rev.  Dr.  Cooper  (Documentary  History  of  New  York, 
iv.  302).  He  says,  "Had  the  baron  succeeded  in  his  attempt  against  Sir  William,  this  country,  at 
least  a  good  part  of  it,  would  have  been  deluged  in  blood  and  slaughter,  and  such  scenes  of  horror 
and  distress  would  have  ensued  as  would  shock  the  ears  of  the  most  obdurate  wretch :  General 
Braddock  being  defeated  at  Monongahela,  and  the  army  under  his  command  almost  cut  to  pieces 
—  one  third  killed,  one  third  wounded,  and  one  third  run  away,  which  General  Burton,  who  was 
in  the  action,  afterwards  assured  me  was  as  near  the  truth  of  the  matter  as  he  could  relate.  Gen 
eral  Shirley  at  that  time  was  at  Oswego.  The  city  of  Albany  would  have  instantly  fallen  a  sacri 
fice  to  that  very  enterprising  general,  the  baron, . . .  who  very  justly  observed  that,  had  he  won  the 
day,  he  would  have  easily  cut  off  all  supplies  from.  General  Shirley,  who  of  course  must  have  sub 
mitted  to  any  terms  the  baron  would  have  pleased  to  impose.  The  Six  Nations,  had  Sir  William 
been  defeated,  undoubtedly  would  have  joined  the  baron,  and  the  city  of  New  York  would  have 
been  the  baron's  headquarters.  But,  thanks  be  to  God  !  all  indulgent  Heaven  did  not  think  proper 
to  devote  this  country  to  ruin."  Braddock,  it  will  be  remembered,  thought  of  eating  his  Christmas 
dinner  in  Philadelphia;  it  is  not  improbable  that  Dieskau  had  some  expectation  of  a  similar  pleasure 
in  New  York. 


184  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

Each  received  a  death-wound  in  his  first  American  battle.  The 
tide  of  popular  feeling  was  changed  with  the  reversed  fortunes  of 
the  war.  The  British  government  evinced  its  sense  of  the  import 
ance  of  Dieskau's  overthrow  by  making  Johnson  a  baronet  and 
presenting  him  a  gratuity  of  five  thousand  pounds.  The  honor  of 
the  result  was  however  more  justly  claimed  for  Lyman,  of  Connec 
ticut.  The  army  and  its  officers  were  nearly  all  New  England  men, 
and  Europe  never  had  seen  as  large  a  collection  of  troops  possessing 
an  equal  average  of  intelligence,  property,  and  good  reputation. 
Colonel  Timothy  Ruggles,  who  distinguished  himself  in  this  action, 
was  afterwards  president  of  the  Stamp  Act  Congress ;  Captain  Is 
rael  Putnam  was  to  fill  the  measure  of  his  renown  at  Bunker  Hill ; 
Colonel  Gridley,  who  had  been  at  Louisburg,  was  also  to  share  the 
danger  and  glory  of  the  first  great  battle  of  the  revolution ;  Lieu 
tenant  Colonel  Pomroy,  of  Northampton,  who  wrote  from  before 
Louisburg,  to  his  wife,  that  "  if  it  were  the  wrill  of  God  he  hoped  to 
see  her  pleasant  face  again,  but,  if  God  in  his  holy  and  sovereign 
providence  had  ordered  it  otherwise,  he  hoped  he  should  have  a 
pleasant  meeting  with  her  in  the  kingdom  of  Heaven,  where  there 
are  no  wrars,  nor  fatiguing  marches,  nor  roaring  cannons,  nor  crack 
ing  bombshells,  nor  long  campaigns,  but  an  eternity  to  spend  in  per 
fect  harmony  and  undisturbed  peace,"  had  seen  his  wife's  pleasant 
face  again,  and  had  written  home  to  his  neighbors,  from  the  camp 
at  Lake  George,  "  Come  to  the  help  of  the  Lord  against  the  mighty : 
you  that  value  our  holy  religion  and  our  liberties  will  spare  nothing, 
even  to  the  one  half  of  your  estate."  This  appeal,  with  others,  be 
traying  a  kindred  enthusiasm,  was  answered.  Two  thousand  men 
were  sent  from  Massachusetts  to  reinforce  the  northern  army ;  but 
they  arrived  after  the  defeat  of  the  French,  and  the  incompetency 
and  cowardice  of  Johnson  paralyzed  their  energies.  The  applause 
he  received  for  sagacity  and  valor  displayed  by  his  subordinates 
was  too  dearly  prized  to  be  hazarded  in  a  second  engagement, 
and,  instead  of  using  his  advantage  by  driving  the  enemy  from 
Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  he  wasted  the  autumn  in  building 
Fort  William  Henry,  near  Lake  George,  and  on  the  approach  of 


MT.  23.]  FAILURE  OF  THE  NIAGARA  EXPEDITION.  185 

winter,  garrisoning   the  useless  structure  with  six   hundred   men, 
disbanded  the  remainder  of  his  forces. 

Shirley  meanwhile,  with  two  regiments,  enfeebled  by  sickness 
and  disheartened  by  news  of  the  defeat  of  Braddock,  reached 
Oswego  on  the  twenty-first  of  August.  Here  vessels  were  built, 
and  preparations  made  for  proceeding  against  Niagara.  On  the 
eighteenth  of  September  six  hundred  men  were  to  embark  on  the 
Ontario  for  the  conquest  of  that  post :  a  blockhouse,  almost  in  ruins, 
surrounded  by  a  shallow  ditch  and  a  rotting  palisade,  and  defended 
by  but  thirty  soldiers,  badly  armed.  A  succession  of  heavy  rains, 
followed  by  head  winds,  and  other  causes,  prevented  their  departure 
until  the  season  was  too  far  advanced.  On  the  twenty-third  of 
October,  therefore,  leaving  at  Oswego  a  garrison  of  seven  hundred 
men,  General  Shirley,  by  the  death  of  Braddock  raised  to  the 
supreme  command  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  began  his  re 
treat  towards  Albany. 


186  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY".  [1755. 


CHAPTEE   XIX. 

WASHINGTON    AT    MOUNT  VERNON CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  HIS  BROTHER    AUGUS 
TINE RETROSPECT    OF    HIS    MILITARY    EXPERIENCE INTRIGUES    AT    THE    SEAT 

OF     GOVERNMENT LETTER    TO     HIS     MOTHER IS     APPOINTED     COMMANDER    IN 

CHIEF    OF    THE    VIRGINIA    FORCES TOUR    OF     INSPECTION INCURSION    OF    THE 

INDIANS PANIC    AMONG    THE    PEOPLE DIFFICULTIES     IN    THE    CAMP SCENES 

AT    WINCHESTER RETREAT    OF    THE    ENEMY END    OF    THE    SEASON. 

WASHINGTON  arrived  at  Mount  Vernon  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  July. 
Excitement  and  activity  had  prolonged  his  illness,  and  he  deter 
mined,  in  the  repose  of  home,  to  seek  a  restoration  of  his  strength ; 
but  he  was  so  honorably  conspicuous,  for  the  part  he  had  acted  on 
the  Monongahela,  that  his  time  was  continually  occupied  with  the 
visits  of  friends  and  of  other  persons  alarmed  at  the  exposed  and 
critical  condition  of  the  province.  As  he  was  still  adjutant  general 
of  the  militia  he  issued  orders  for  the  companies  in  his  district  to 
assemble  for  exercise  and  review,  and  attended  to  the  ordinary 
duties  of  that  office,  but  did  not  otherwise  take  any  part  in  public 
affairs. 

His  brother  Augustine  wrote  to  him  from  Williamsburg,  where 
the  house  of  burgesses,  of  which  he  was  a  member,  had  been  con 
vened,  that  he  might  derive  advantage  from  being  present  during 
the  session.  He  replied,  that  he  was  not  able,  were  he  ever  so  wil 
ling,  to  go  to  the  seat  of  government,  as  it  wras  with  some  difficulty 
and  much  fatigue  that  he  visited  his  plantations,  so  much  had  a 
sickness  of  five  weeks  reduced  him.  "  But  though  it  is  not  in  my 
power  to  meet  you  there,"  he  continued,  "  I  can  nevertheless  assure 
you  that,  so  little  am  I  dispirited  by  what  has  happened,  I  am  al 
ways  ready  and  willing  to  render  my  country  any  services  that  I 
am  capable  of,  though  never  upon  the  terms  I  have  done :  having 


MT.  23.]  INTRIGUES  AT  WILLIAMSBURG.  187 

suffered  much  in  my  private  fortune  besides  impairing  one  of  the 
best  of  constitutions."  He  proceeded  to  sum  up  the  account  of  his 
public  services  and  their  rewards.  "  I  was  employed/'  he  wrote,  "  to 
go  a  journey,  in  the  winter,  when  I  believe  few  or  none  would 
have  undertaken  it :  and  what  did  I  get  by  it  ?  My  expenses  borne  ! 
I  was  then  appointed,  with  trifling  pay,  to  conduct  a  handful  of 
men  to  the  Ohio.  What  did  I  get  by  that  ?  Why,  after  putting 
myself  to  a  considerable  expense  in  equipping  and  providing  neces 
saries  for  the  campaign,  I  went  out,  was  soundly  beaten,  and  lost 
all !  came  in,  and  had  my  commission  taken  from  me ;  or,  in  other 
words,  my  command  reduced,  under  pretence  of  an  order  from 
home.  I  next  went  out  a  volunteer,  with  General  Braddock,  and 
lost  all  my  horses,  and  many  other  things.  But  this,  being  a  volun 
tary  act,  I  ought  not  to  have  mentioned  it ;  nor  should  I  have  done 
so,  were  it  not  to  show  that  I  have  been  on  the  losing  side  ever 
since  I  entered  the  service,  which  is  now  nearly  two  years." 

The  people  evidently  expected  that  the  leadership  of  any  troops 
which  might  be  raised  for  the  defence  of  the  province  would  be 
given  to  Washington ;  but  Dinwiddie  had  become  attached  to  his 
countryman  Innes,  and  strongly  favored  his  appointment.  He 
perhaps  regarded  the  popular  favorite  as  quite  too  young,  not 
withstanding  the  admirable  manner  in  which  he  had  hitherto  con 
ducted  himself,  to  be  placed  at  the  head  of  the  military  establish 
ment  of  the  oldest  and  richest  dominion  in  America.  The  assembly 
voted  to  raise  twelve  hundred  men,  and  one  of  Washington's  friends, 
in  conversation  with  the  governor,  after  suggesting  that  this  number 
should  be  increased  to  four  thousand,  said,  "If  this  were  done,  I 
suppose  your  honor  would  give  the  command  of  them  to  Colonel 
Washington,  for  I  think  he  deserves  everything  his  country  can  do 
for  him."  The  wary  Scotchman  spoke  favorably  of  him,  but  inti 
mated  that  there  was  a  warm  solicitation  for  the  office  from  another 
quarter.  It  was  believed,  nevertheless,  that  it  would  be  granted  to 
Washington  if  he  became  a  suitor  for  it,  and  the  gentleman  who 
held  this  colloquy  with  the  executive  wrote  to  him,  "  If  we  could 
be  so  happy  as  to  have  you  here  at  this  time,  and  it  were  known 


188  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

that  you  are  willing  to  take  such  a  command,  I  believe  it  would 
greatly  promote  the  success  of  our  endeavors  with  the  assembly." 
Without  expressing  any  disinclination  for  the  service,  however,  he 
declined  to  take  any  measures  for  obtaining  what  he  could  receive, 
if  at  all,  only  as  a  voluntarily  offered  assurance  of  public  confidence. 

While  his  prospects  were  thus  uncertain,  his  mother,  still  influ 
enced  by  the  feelings  she  had  exhibited  when  informed  that  he 
might  join  the  expedition  under  General  Braddock,  endeavored  to 
dissuade  him  from  taking  any  part  in  these  frontier  wars,  in  which 
he  had  already  suffered  so  much  and  been  exposed  to  so  many 
dangers.  In  answer  to  her  letter  he  wrote,  on  the  fifteenth  of 
August,  "  If  it  is  in  my  power  to  avoid  going  to  the  Ohio  again,  I 
shall ;  but  if  the  command  is  pressed  upon  me  by  the  general  voice 
of  the  country,  and  offered  upon  such  terms  as  cannot  be  objected 
against,  it  would  reflect  dishonor  on  me  to  refuse  it ;  and  that,  I 
am  sure,  must,  and  ought,  to  give  you  greater  uneasiness,  than  my 
going  in  an  honorable  command.  Upon  no  other  terms  will  I 
accept  it.  At  present  I  have  no  proposals  made  to  me,  nor  have 
I  any  advice  of  such  an  intention,  except  from  private  hands." 

In  another  letter,  of  the  same  date,  addressed  to  Mr.  Warner 
Lewis,  at  Williamsburg,  he  expressed  belief  that  the  command  of 
the  army  could  not  be  obtained  for  him  upon  terms  that  he  would 
accept.  The  most  important  conditions  which  he  mentioned  were, 
that  he  should  be  allowed  to  choose  his  own  officers,  and  that  there 
should  be  a  better  system  of  military  regulations,  more  promptness 
in  paying  the  troops,  and  a  thorough  reform  in  all  the  agencies  for 
procuring  supplies.  At  best  the  position  would  be  one  of  extreme 
difficulty.  "  I  believe,"  he  wrote,  "  our  circumstances  are  brought 
to  such  an  unhappy  dilemma  that  no  man  can  gain  any  honor  by 
conducting  our  forces  at  this  time,  but  will  rather  lose  his  reputation 
if  he  attempts  it." 

Before  these  letters  were  written,  however,  Washington  had  been 
appointed  commander  in  chief  of  all  the  forces  raised  or  to  be 
raised  in  Virginia,  upon  the  very  conditions  he  had  thus  announced 
to  his  friend,  and  with  the  privilege  of  choosing  an  aid  de  camp 


J£T.  23.]  TOUR  OF  OBSERVATION.  189 

and  secretary.  The  assembly  voted  forty  thousand  pounds  for  the 
public  service ;  resolved  to  increase  the  number  of  companies  to 
sixteen ;  and  granted  to  George  Washington  three  hundred  pounds, 
to  the  captains  seventy-five  pounds  each,  to  every  lieutenant  and  sur 
geon  thirty  pounds,  and  to  every  soldier  five  pounds,  as  "  a  reward 
and  compensation  for  their  gallant  behavior  and  losses"  in  the  battle 
near  Fort  Duquesne.  The  governor  was  satisfied  or  affected  to  be 
so  with  the  result,  and  in  a  letter  to  the  ministers  on  the  subject 
mentioned  Washington  as  "  a  man  of  great  merit  and  resolution," 
adding  an  expression  of  his  conviction  that  General  Braddock,  if 
he  had  survived,  "would  have  recommended  him  to  the  royal 
favor." 

Upon  being  advised  of  his  promotion  Washington  went  immedi 
ately  to  Williamsburg  to  consult  with  the  governor  respecting  the 
duties  which  awaited  him,  and  to  enter  upon  their  administration. 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Adam  Stephen  and  Major  Andrew  Lewis  w^ere 
chosen  to  be  his  principal  officers,  and  it  was  determined  to  establish 
his  headquarters  at  Winchester.  After  visiting  Alexandria  and 
Fredericksburg,  where  he  stationed  recruiting  agents,  he  proceed 
ed  to  Winchester,  arriving  there  on  the  fourteenth  of  Septem 
ber.  In  a  few  days  afterwards  he  set  out  on  a  tour  of  observa 
tion.  He  visited  Fort  Cumberland,  on  Will's  creek,  and  Fort  Din- 
widdie,  on  Jackson's  river,  at  both  posts  taking  upon  himself  the 
command  of  the  assembled  troops  and  issuing  such  orders  as  the 
condition  of  affairs  made  necessary.  He  returned  by  way  of  Alex 
andria  and  Fredericksburg,  intending  to  proceed  by  fast  riding  to 
Williamsburg,  for  consultation  with  the  governor  and  legislature, 
and  had  reached  the  residence  of  his  friend  Colonel  Baylor,  near 
Fredericksburg,  on  the  seventh  of  October,  when  he  was  overtaken 
by  an  express  from  Lieutenant  Colonel  Stephen,  whom  he  had  left 
in  charge  of  Fort  Cumberland,  informing  him  that  a  body  of  Indians 
had  made  an  incursion  into  the  settlements,  killing  and  making 
prisoners  of  the  inhabitants,  and  destroying  their  houses  and  other 
property. 

Instantly  changing   his   plans,  Washington   wrote    to    the    gov- 


190  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY,  [1756. 

ernor  an  account  of  what  had  occurred,  and  started  for  Winchester. 
Passing  again  through  Fredericksburg  he  met  Colonel  Stephen,  in 
person,  who  gave  a  more  startling  and  discouraging  view  of  matters 
than  that  contained  in  his  letter.  Stephen  was  sent  on  to  the  seat 
of  government,  and  "Washington  as  soon  as  possible  found  his  way 
to  headquarters,  where  he  arrived  on  the  tenth.  He  found  the 
place  in  a  state  of  extreme  confusion,  the  inhabitants  of  the  back 
country  coming  in,  conveying  such  of  their  household  goods  as  they 
had  been  able  hurriedly  to  remove,  while  the  people  of  the  town 
were  preparing  to  find  greater  security  farther  east.  Making  use 
of  every  practicable  means  to  allay  the  excitement,  he  endeavored 
to  raise  a  body  of  militia  to  proceed  without  delay  against  the 
enemy,  but  was  informed,  by  Colonel  Martin  who  had  already  made 
such  an  attempt,  that  it  was  impossible  to  get  together  more  than 
twenty  or  twenty-five  men,  the  rest  of  the  militia  having  absolutely 
refused  to  leave  their  homes,  declaring  that  they  would  rather  die 
with  their  wives  and  families  than  march  against  the  savages.  Fail 
ing  in  this  plan  Washington  despatched  expresses  to  hasten  forward 
recruits,  of  whom  he  had  left  seventy  at  Fredericksburg,  and  more 
than  thirty  at  Alexandria,  and  also  the  militia  of  Fairfax  and  Prince 
William  counties,  who  had  been  ordered  to  join  him.  Spies  were 
likewise  sent  out  to  discover  the  situation  of  the  enemy  and  to 
encourage  the  rangers,  who,  it  was  reported,  were  blocked  up  by 
the  Indians,  in  small  forts,  but  whom  Washington  believed  to  be 
"  more  encompassed  with  fear  than  by  the  enemy." 

The  young  commander  found  himself  surrounded  by  innumerable 
difficulties.  The  people,  though  aware  of  their  imminent  danger, 
and  indeed  exaggerating  it  in  an  extraordinary  degree,  instead  of 
supporting  him  by  a  ready  co-operation,  seemed  to  exult  in  every 
circumstance  by  which  his  plans  were  impeded.  "  No  orders  are 
obeyed,"  he  wrote  to  Governor  Dinwiddie  on  the  eleventh,  "but 
such  as  a  party  of  soldiers,  or  my  own  drawn  sword  enforces. 
Without  this,  not  a  single  horse,  for  the  most  earnest  occasion,  can  be 
had :  to  such  a  pitch  has  the  insolence  of  these  people  arrived  by 
having  every  point,  hitherto,  submitted  to  them.  However,  I  have 


vET.  23.J  ALARMS  AT  WINCHESTER.  191 

given  up  none  where  his  majesty's  service  requires  the  contrary, 
and  where  my  proceedings  are  justified  by  my  instructions;  nor 
will  I,  unless  they  execute  what  they  threaten,  that  is,  blow  out  our 
brains."  In  the  same  letter  he  urged  the  necessity  of  the  passage 
of  an  act  by  the  assembly  authorizing  the  enforcement  of  military 
law,  which  at  that  time  had  become  almost  entirely  inoperative  in 
the  colony ;  and  frankly  avowed  that  unless  this  were  done  he 
should  resign  his  commission. 

Although  Virginia  had  now,  according  to  reports  transmitted  to 
the  Board  of  Trade,  an  enrolled  militia  of  twenty-eight  thousand,* 
the  prospect  of  raising  a  single  regiment  to  protect  her  frontier 
from  the  most  dreaded  and  remorseless  of  enemies  seemed  utterly 
hopeless.  The  lower  counties  found  an  excuse  for  not  furnishing 
men  for  this  purpose,  in  the  fact  that  their  white  population  lived 
in  perpetual  fear  of  their  negro  slaves,  who  required  constant 
watching,'}'  while  the  inhabitants  of  the  back  country  were  not  only 
unwilling  to  do  anything  for  their  own  defence,  but  encouraged 
insubordination  in  the  small  force  collected  for  their  relief,  harbored 
deserters,  and  in  every  way  manifested  as  little  sympathy  with 
Washington  as  might  have  been  expected  by  the  leader  of  a  hostile 
army. 

The  panic  which  continued  to  prevail  in  Winchester  is  illustrated 
in  the  letters  which  Washington  forwarded  to  the  governor.  The 
Sunday  after  his  return  to  that  place  an  express  arrived,  exhausted 
with  fatigue  and  fear,  stating  that  a  party  of  Indians  was  but  twelve 
miles  off,  and  that  the  settlers  were  flying  in  disorder  from  their 
homes.  Men  familiar  with  the  country  were  sent  out  to  watch 
their  movements  and  ascertain  their  numbers ;  the  defences  of  the 
town  were  carefully  guarded ;  and  near  the  end  of  a  night  of  sleep 
less  anxiety  intelligence  was  received,  that  the  Indians  were  within 
four  miles  of  the  village,  killing  and  destroying  all  before  them. 
The  trembling  messenger  alleged  that  he  himself  had  heard  constant 
firing,  and  the  shrieks  of  the  murdered.  Washington  immediately 

*  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  New  York,  vi.,  993. 
t  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  iv.,  221. 


192  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1755. 

collected  what  force  he  could,  about  forty  men,  and  marched  directly 
to  the  scene  of  these  outrages,  when  he  found  that  all  this  terror 
and  trouble  had  been  caused  by  three  drunken  soldiers  of  the  ligm> 
horse,  carousing,  blaspheming,  and  firing  their  pistols.  They  were, 
of  course,  conducted  to  the  camp  as  prisoners.  The  alarm  of  the 
previous  day  proved  to  be  quite  as  ill  founded. 

The  consternation  was  not  confined  to  the  frontier.  It  was 
rapidly  spreading  throughout  the  colony.  An  officer  who  arrived 
with  a  small  party  of  recruits  from  Alexandria  stated  that  he  had 
found  the  road  across  the  Blue  Ridge  obstructed  by  people  flying 
for  their  lives;  he  had  in  vain  endeavored  to  stop  them;  they 
were  persuaded  that  Winchester  was  in  flames,  and  that  the  foe  was 
in  quick  and  blood  thirsty  pursuit.  During  this  state  of  affairs 
Washington  endeavored  to  collect  and  arm  the  men  who  had  aban 
doned  their  homes,  and  to  remove  their  families  to  places  of  com 
parative  safety ;  he  gave  pressing  orders  to  the  recently  appointed 
officers,  who  never  ceased  to  give  him  occasions  of  complaint  by 
their  inattention  to  duty,  to  hasten  their  recruits ;  and  directed  the 
county  lieutenants  below  the  Blue  Ridge  to  send  their  militia  imme 
diately  to  Winchester ;  but  before  sufficient  force  was  assembled  to 
justify  an  attempt  to  drive  the  enemy  back  to  the  Ohio  they  became 
satiated  with  butchery  and  plunder,  and  had  recrossed  the  Alle- 
ganies. 

Washington  availed  himself  of  the  temporary  repose  which  fol 
lowed  to  complete,  as  far  as  circumstances  would  permit,  the  organ 
ization  of  his  little  army.  He  appointed  Captain  George  Mercer 
his  aid  de  camp,  and  a  Mr.  Fitzpatrick,  of  Alexandria,  his  secretary. 
Compelled  to  attend  personally  to  every  department,  he  was  for  a 
considerable  time  occupied  in  making  the  most  judicious  disposition 
of  his  troops  for  the  defence  of  the  country,  and  in  procuring  for 
them  necessary  supplies,  while  with  untiring  assiduity  he  urged 
upon  the  executive  and  legislature  the  establishment  of  such  prin 
ciples  of  discipline  as  obtained  in  other  colonies,  and  without  which, 
he  was  persuaded,  no  supplies  of  money,  however  liberal,  or  levies 
of  men,  however  large,  would  enable  a  commander  to  satisfy  the 


ffir.  23.]  NEW  MILITARY  LAW.  193 

reasonable  expectations  of  the  people,  or  to  accomplish  anything  of 
real  and  permanent  importance  against  the  enemy.  He  at  length 
succeeded  in  procuring  the  passage  of  a  bill  through  the  house  of 
burgesses  providing  for  the  punishment  of  mutiny,  desertion,  and 
disobedience,  and  for  holding  courts  martial.  It  was  not  in  all  re 
spects  such  a  law  as  he  desired,  and  he  perceived  that  a  clause  in  it 
delaying  the  execution  of  sentences  until  approved  by  the  governor 
would  very  much  impair  its  efficiency ;  but,  with  this  and  other  de 
fects,  it  relieved  him  from  many  of  the  difficulties  and  embarrass 
ments  to  which  he  had  hitherto  been  subjected,  and  was  a  gratify 
ing  concession  to  his  wishes,  and  a  flattering  exhibition  of  respect 
for  his  opinions,  by  the  administration.  He  also  strongly  urged 
upon  the  governor  and  legislature,  as  he  had  repeatedly  done  be 
fore,  the  imperative  necessity  of  conciliating  the  Indians,  and  attach 
ing  them  to  the  British  interest,  as  the  best  means  of  counteracting 
the  designs  of  the  French ;  and  in  compliance  with  his  recommenda 
tion  Colonel  Byrd  and  Colonel  Randolph  were  appointed  commis 
sioners  to  negotiate  with  the  Cherokees,  Catawbas,  and  other  south 
ern  tribes,  for  their  support  in  the  ensuing  year. 

13 


194  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 


CHAPTER   XX. 

RENEWAL    OF   DIFFICULTIES  RESPECTING  RANK CAPTAIN    DAGWORTHY APPEAL 

TO    GOVERNOR    SHIRLEY EXPEDITION     TO     NEW    ENGLAND PHILADELPHIA 

NEW   YORK MISS    PHILIPSE  —  RECEPTION     IN    BOSTON DAGWORTHY's    CLAIMS 

SILENCED    BY    THE    COMMANDER    IN    CHIEF. 

THE  regulation  by  the  ministers  respecting  rank,  by  which  all 
officers  holding  royal  commissions  were  to  have  precedence  of  those 
appointed  by  the  provincial  governments,  had  been,  as  has  been 
shown,  a  cause  of  continual  discontent.  Washington  had  steadily 
refused  to  serve  under  any  commander  whose  titular  dignity  was 
inferior  to  his  own,  and  his  feelings  on  this  subject  were  generally 
shared  by  his  companions  in  arms.  The  only  remedy,  except  a 
revocation  of  the  order  of  the  twelfth  of  November,  1754,  which 
merely  confirmed  the  pretensions  of  the  king's  officers  in  America 
previous  to  that  time,  would  have  been  the  granting  of  commissions 
from  the  crown  to  the  principal  officers  selected  by  the  colonial 
authorities.  Assurances  from  General  Braddock,  and  the  honorable 
distinction  he  had  won  in  the  battle  of  the  Monongahela,  had  led 
Washington  confidently  to  expect  such  a  commission.  Governor 
Dinwiddie  had  strongly,  though  perhaps  reluctantly,  recommended 
him  to  the  home  administration  as  a  man  whose  appointment  to  a 
place  in  his  majesty's  army  would  be  of  "infinite  service,"  and  had 
stated  in  the  same  communication  that  the  officers  of  the  Virginia 
regiment  generally,  were  "  dispirited  for  want"  of  such  commissions 
as  would  secure  to  them,  under  all  circumstances,  the  consideration 
properly  appertaining  to  their  respective  conditions. 

At  Fort  Cumberland,  which  was  within  the  limits  of  Maryland, 
Governor  Sharpe  of  that  colony  had  stationed  about  thirty  men, 
under  the  direction  of  Captain  Dagworthy,  who  had  held  a  royal 


&T.  24.]  CAPTAIN  DAGWORTHY.  195 

commission  in  the  last  war,  and  now  claimed  its  privileges  and 
authority,  refusing  to  obey  any  provincial  officer,  however  high  in 
rank.  When  therefore  Colonel  Stephen  was  sent  to  this  post,  with 
a  considerable  force,  Dagworthy  paid  no  attention  to  his  orders,  and 
the  garrison  was  in  consequence  soon  in  a  state  of  insubordination, 
the  larger  part  of  it  adhering  to  Colonel  Stephen,  while  the  frag 
ment  of  a  company  from  Maryland  would  recognize  no  commander 
but  Captain  Dagworthy. 

Washington  represented  the  matter  to  the  governor  and  council 
and  solicited  their  immediate  action  for  its  settlement.  A  corre 
spondence  followed  between  the  two  governors,  but  without  any 
satisfactory  result.  Sharpe  seemed  to  regard  the  fort  as  under  his 
particular  charge  because  it  was  in  his  province ;  but  Dinwiddie 
replied  that  it  was  the  king's  fort,  built  in  obedience  to  directions 
sent  to  him  from  the  king,  by  troops  chiefly  in  the  king's  pay,  and 
consequently  not  subject  to  any  special  control  by  the  governor 
of  Maryland.  And  as  to  Dagworthy's  pretence  that  his  captain's 
commission  from  the  crown  entitled  him  to  command  Colonel 
Stephen,  and  the  commander  in  chief  of  the  forces  of  Virginia,  it 
was  known  that  he  had  commuted  his  half  pay  for  a  specific  sum  of 
money,  so  that  his  commission  had  become  null  and  void  as  if  it  had 
never  been  granted.  The  case  however  presented  some  questiona 
ble  points,  and  Dinwiddie  was  unwilling  to  give  any  positive  orders 
in  regard  to  it,  though  he  intimated  to  Washington  that  according 
to  military  usage  Dagworthy  might  be  arrested  by  him.  But  this 
discreet  officer  did  not  choose  to  hazard  a  proceeding  beyond 
what  he  conceived  to  be  the  sphere  of  his  proper  duties,  for  which 
he  might  himself  be  called  to  account,  and  simply  expressed  his 
determination  to  resign  his  military  position,  as  he  had  previously 
done  under  not  dissimilar  circumstances,  unless  the  matter  should 
be  settled  to  his  satisfaction. 

The  messenger  despatched  by  Governor  Dinwiddie  to  General 
Shirley,  commander  in  chief  of  the  king's  forces  in  America,  re 
questing  that  the  officers  of  the  Virginia  regiment  be  "put  upon 
the  establishment,"  had  returned  from  Boston  without  having  sue- 


196  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [175G. 

ceeded  in  his  mission,  and  these  officers,  therefore,  in  the  warmest 
manner,  desired  Washington  to  proceed  to  General  Shirley's  head 
quarters  in  person,  and  lay  before  him  their  memorial  of  the  sev 
eral  difficulties  respecting  rank,  which  the  conduct  of  Dagworthy 
had  now  invested  with  an  unusual  interest. 

On  the  fourteenth  of  January,  1756,  he  solicited  of  Governor  Din- 
widdie  leave  of  absence  for  this  purpose,  which  the  governor  readily 
granted,  in  the  hope  of  being  relieved  from  any  further  trouble  in 
regard  to  the  subject;  and  after  issuing  such  military  orders  as  he 
deemed  necessary,  and  arranging  his  private  affairs  for  the  period 
during  which  he  proposed  to  be  absent,  he  set  out,  on  the  fourth  of 
February,  with  his  aid  de  camp,  Captain  George  Mercer,  and  Captain 
Walter  Stewart,  of  the  Virginia  light  horse,  for  New  England. 

Although  he  declared  in  a  letter  to  Colonel  Stephen  that  this 
expedition  had  not  been  thought  of  until  he  left  Winchester,  a  few 
days  previously,  it  so  happened  that  he  was  generously  supplied 
with  whatever  was  necessary  for  maintaining  an  appearance  suit 
able  for  a  Virginia  gentleman  of  fortune,  possessing  an  eminent 
position  in  society.  He  had  a  short  time  previously  given  an  order 
to  his  agent  in  London,  in  which  we  have  exhibited  not  only  his 
taste  and  luxury  in  dress,  but  an  example  of  the  best  costume  of 
his  class  in  that  period.  He  directs  his  correspondent  particularly 
to  send,  "  two  complete  livery  suits  for  servants,  with  a  spare  cloak, 
and  all  other  necessary  trimmings  for  two  suits  more.  I  would  have 
you,"  he  writes,  "  choose  the  livery  by  our  arms,  only  as  the  field  of 
the  arms  is  white,  I  think  the  clothes  had  better  not  be  quite  so,  but 
nearly  like  the  enclosed  :  the  trimmings  and  facing  of  scarlet,  and  a 
scarlet  waistcoat.  If  livery  lace  is  not  quite  disused,  I  should  be 
o;lad  to  have  the  cloaks  laced :  I  like  that  fashion  best ;  and  two 

o  ' 

silver-laced  hats  for  the  above  servants.  One  set  of  horse  furniture, 
with  livery  lace,  with  the  Washington  crest  on  the  housings,  &c. : 
the  cloak  to  be  of  the  same  piece  and  color  of  the  clothes.  Three 
gold  and  scarlet  sword-knots ;  three  silver  and  blue  ditto ;  one  fash 
ionable  gold-laced  hat."*  A  private  gentleman  and  his  servants, 

*  Life  by  Irving,  i.,  227,  note. 


MT.  24.]  FRIENDLY  CORRESPONDENCE.  197 

with  such  appointments  as  are  here  mentioned  or  suggested,  and 
riding  horses  of  the  best  blood  and  condition,  would  not  now  be 
able  to  travel  from  Williamsburg  to  Boston  without  exciting  con 
tinual  and  especial  wonder.  The  last  century  has  brought  even  to 
this  continent  few  more  noticeable  changes,  and  perhaps  none  of 
more  questionable  propriety,  than  those  which  have  induced  a 
homely  and  almost  undistinguishable  uniformity  in  our  apparel. 

The  youthful  hero  was  not  ignorant  of  the  extent  and  quality  of 
his  reputation,  and,  besides  seeing  Shirley,  felt  a  natural  desire  to 
visit  the  leading  cities  of  the  country,  in  which  he  was  confident  of 
an  agreeable  reception.  He  had  had  a  friendly  correspondence  with 
Governor  Morris,  and  Mr.  Gist,  who  had  been  sent  to  Philadelphia  in 
the  preceding  October,  on  some  business  connected  with  the  service, 
had  written  from  that  city  assurances  of  the  high  and  kindly  regard 
entertained  for  him  there.  "  Your  name,"  he  states,  "  is  more  talked 
of  in  Pennsylvania  than  that  of  any  other  person  in  the  army,  and 
everybody  seems  willing  to  venture  under  your  command."  The 
assembly  was  sitting.  Mr.  Franklin  and  Mr.  Peters  both  told  him 
that  if  Washington  "  would  write  a  letter  setting  forth  the  murders 
and  plunderings  on  the  frontier,  and  in  view  of  them  asking  the 
assistance  of  Pennsylvania,  his  representations  would  have  more 
influence  to  that  end  than  those  of  any  man  in  America."  Colonel 
Gage,  who  had  been  his  companion  in  arms  on  the  Ohio,  and  who 
twenty  years  afterwards  was  to  oppose  him  as  commander  in  chief 
of  the  king's  forces  at  Boston,  had  written  to  him  from  Albany  in 
November,  "It  gave  me  great  pleasure  to  hear  from  a  person  of 
whom  the  world  has  justly  so  good  an  opinion,  and  for  whom  I  have 
so  great  an  esteem.  I  shall  be  happy  to  have  frequent  news  of  your 
welfare,  and  hope  soon  to  hear  that  your  laudable  endeavors  and 
the  noble  spirit  you  have  exerted  in  the  service  of  your  country 
have  at  last  been  crowned  with  the  success  they  merit." 

It  is  difficult  to  realize  the  truth  that  this  country,  in  its  earliest 
settled  and  most  populous  portions,  presented  so  very  different  an 
aspect  but  a  century  ago.  A  hundred  of  the  largest  towns  then 
existing  here  would  not  make  one  as  large  as  is  now  the  smallest 


J98  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

of  the  three  capitals  Washington  proposed  to  visit.  Everything, 
except  society,  has  advanced  with  the  same  uniform  and  unprece 
dented  rapidity.  To  this  deputation  from  Virginia,  the  material 
changes  and  improvements  disclosed  in  their  progress  toward  the 
metropolis  of  the  eastern  colonies,  were  almost  as  remarkable  as 
those  which  time  itself  has  since  brought  to  the  Ancient  Dominion. 

Travelling  on  horseback  the  party  reached  Philadelphia  on  Friday 
the  sixth  of  February,  the  second  day  after  leaving  Alexandria.  Phil 
adelphia  was  then  the  most  considerable  city  in  North  America,  and 
contained  about  twenty  thousand  inhabitants.  An  enumeration  made 
six  years  previously,  by  Franklin,  the  Shippens,  and  other  leading 
citizens,  each  taking  a  ward  to  canvass,  showed  that  there  were  in 
the  ten  wards  and  two  suburbs  two  thousand  and  seventy-six  houses, 
and  eleven  places  of  worship.  It  was  near  enough  to  the  scene  of 
the  wars  in  which  Washington  had  been  engaged  for  its  inquisitive 
people  to  learn  and  to  be  interested  in  all  the  particulars  of  their 
history.  He  remained  here  a  week,  receiving,  with  his  companions, 
marked  attentions  from  the  most  distinguished  of  the  official  and 
private  characters  who  at  that  time  made  the  polite  society  of 
Philadelphia  the  most  agreeable  in  the  colonies. 

On  Sunday,  the  fifteenth  of  February,  he  arrived  in  New  York. 
This  city,  which  in  the  next  fifteen  years  doubled  its  population, 
contained  then  but  ten  thoiisand  three  hundred  and  eighty-one 
inhabitants.  In  the  previous  summer  the  first  stage  coach  for  pas 
sengers  between  New  York  and  Philadelphia  had  been  established. 
The  time  occupied  on  the  road  was  three  days.  The  same  year  the 
mail,  which  had  hitherto  been  carried  once  in  two  weeks,  began  to 
be  carried  every  week.  This  year  another  stage  coach  was  set  up, 
with  the  ambitious  name  of  Flying  Machine,  and  its  proprietors 
promised  passengers  to  take  them  from  city  to  city  in  two  days, 
at  three  pence  per  mile,  or  twenty  shillings  for  the  entire  distance. 
In  this  quaint  old  town,  which  still  preserved  many  of  the  charac 
teristics  of  New  Amsterdam ;  in  which  houses,  built  of  materials 
and  according  to  plans  sent  from  the  banks  of  the  Zuyder  Zee, 
were  not  more  peculiar  than  much  in  the  manners  of  their  occu- 


a    aug 
of  a  we 

of  Mi; 
mt'i,   M 
charms 


e- 

lio  wo.,-  the  giu- 
aiui   (>i  In>  hcnv 


doubted! 

|H;  am 
an  ol,M.v1 


oca 


mi)j 

•respeH.-. 
compel  1 


- 


MT.  24.]  ARRIVAL  IN  BOSTON.  199 

pants ;  in  and  about  which  were  settled  many  of  those  Huguenot 
families  who  have  constituted  so  admirable  an  element  in  her  socie 
ty,  and  in  which  there  was  a  dignified  circle  of  English  and  Anglo- 
American  gentry,  ready,  with  the  rest,  to  pay  him  especial  honors, 
Washington  passed  nearly  a  week. 

There  are  traditions  which  associate  his  name  in  tender  connec 
tion  with  that  of  a  young  woman,  a  belle  of  New  York,  the  mansion 
house  of  whose  family  is  still  visible  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson. 
Beverly  Robinson,  a  schoolmate  and  friend,  son  of  the  speaker  of 
the  Virginia  assembly,  resided  here  at  that  time,  having  married 
a  daughter  of  Mr.  Frederick  Philipse,  one  of  the  nieces  and  heiresses 
of  a  wealthy  landholder,  Mr.  Adolphus  Philipse.  He  was  the  guest 
of  Mr.  Robinson  while  he  remained  in  the  city,  and  at  his  house 
met  Mrs.  Robinson's  sister  and  coheiress,  Mary  Philipse,  whose 
charms  made  a  deep  impression  upon  him.  She  was  two  years  older 
than  himself,  and  from  a  portrait  of  her  which  has  been  preserved 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  remarkably  beautiful,  but  she  was  un 
doubtedly  an  elegant  woman,  and  her  liberal  expectations  as  to  for 
tune,  and  the  eminent  social  position  of  her  family,  made  her  hand 
an  object  of  ambition  among  the  leading  young  men  of  the  country. 
Washington  however  was  less  fitted  for  the  drawing  room  than  for 
the  council  of  war,  even  at  this  early  age,  and  notwithstanding  his 
military  fame,  his  indefectible  private  character,  his  hereditary 
respectability,  fine  person,  and  various  manly  accomplishments,  was 
compelled  in  the  society  of  women  to  give  place  to  men  who  had 
cultivated  more  successfully  the  art  of  pleasing.  He  kept  the  secret 
of  his  passion,  as  he  had  that  of  his  tenderness  for  the  "  lowland 
beauty"  whose  praises  are  celebrated  in  letters  which  he  wrote  at 
seventeen,  while  surveying  the  estates  of  Lord  Fairfax;  and  on 
Friday,  the  twentieth  of  February,  pursued  his  journey,  finding 
occupation  for  his  thoughts  in  the  advanced  civilization  and  pros 
perity  of  the  provinces  east  of  the  Hudson. 

Arriving  in  Boston,  he  was  received  by  Governor  Shirley  with 
affection,  as  well  as  with  the  respect  due  to  a  person  of  his  distin 
guished  reputation.  Shirley  had  been  his  occasional  guest  at  Mount 


200  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756 

Vernon  during  the  congress  of  governors  at  Alexandria,  and  had 
"perfectly  charmed"  him  by  his  "character  and  appearance,"  and  the 
young  Virginian  had  not  only  won  his  friendship  at  that  time,  but 
had  entitled  himself  to  a  warmer  regard  by  an  intimacy  with  his 
son,  General  Braddock's  private  secretary,  which  ended  only  with 
the  last  moment  of  that  person's  life,  on  the  field  of  the  Mononga- 
hela.  Shirley  was  about  sixty-four  years  old,  but  had  married 
a  young  Frenchwoman,  while  in  Paris,  a  few  years  previously, 
and  now  wore  gracefully  the  manners  of  middle  age.*  Boston  at 
this  period  contained  nearly  fourteen  thousand  inhabitants,  and  was 
not  increasing  either  in  population  or  wealth,  but  in  intelligence  it 
was  before  any  other  American  city,  and  was  not  inferior  to  any  in 
social  refinement.  Washington  was  received  here,  as  he  had  been 
in  Philadelphia  and  New  York,  with  the  highest  consideration,  by  all 

*  William  Shirley  was  born  in  Sussex,  England,  about  the  year  1693,  and  was  bred  to  the  pro 
fession  of  the  law.  He  obtained  employment  under  government  in  London,  but  having  the  pros 
pect  of  a  numerous  family  was  advised  to  remove  to  Boston,  where  he  resided  six  or  eight  years  in 
expectation  of  being  appointed  collector ;  but  that  place  having  been  conferred  on  another  person, 
he  was,  in  1741,  made  governor  of  Massachusetts.  He  planned  the  expedition  against  Cape  Breton 
in  1745,  and  on  the  last  day  of  August  in  the  same  year  was  appointed  colonel  of  a  regiment  of 
foot.  The  next  year  he  published  an  account  of  that  expedition,  in  "A  Letter  from  William  Shir 
ley,  Esq.,  Governor  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  to  his  grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  with  a  Journal  of 
the  Siege  of  Louisburgh,"  and  returned  to  England  in  1749,  when  he  was  appointed  one  of  the 
commissioners  to  settle  the  boundaries  between  the  possessions  of  England  and  France  on  this  conti 
nent.  While  thus  engaged  he  wrote  the  Memorial  of  the  English  Commissaries,  dated  the  twenty- 
first  of  September,  1750,  in  which  he  claimed  for  the  English  all  the  land  east  of  the  Penobscot  and 
south  of  the  St.  Lawrence  as  constituting  the  ancient  Acadia.  He  returned  to  his  government  of 
Massachusetts  in  1753,  and  in  1754  explored  the  Kennebec,  on  which  river  he  erected  Fort  Halifax, 
on  the  present  site  of  the  city  of  Augusta.  On  the  second  of  February,  1755,  he  was  appointed 
major  general,  and  military  superintendent  of  the  northern  colonies,  and  made  the  expedition  to 
Oswego,  which  has  been  mentioned  in  the  text,  and  which  brought  probably  undeserved  disgrace 
upon  him.  The  death  of  Braddock  made  him  commander  in  chief  of  the  British  army  in  America, 
but  he  was  superseded  in  this  office  as  well  as  in  the  government  of  Massachusetts,  soon  after  the 
visit  of  Washington  to  Boston,  and  ordered  to  England,  where  he  was  not  very  well  received  by  his 
official  superiors.  There  were  several  publications  in  his  defence,  one  of  which,  published  in  1757, 
entitled  "A  Keview  of  Military  Operations  in  America,"  &c.,  was  written  by  William  Smith,  the 
historian.  These  publications  relieved  him  from  much  of  the  odium  he  had  suffered,  and  in  1759  he 
became  lieutenant  general,  and  soon  after  was  appointed  to  the  government  of  the  Bahama  Islands. 
Shirley  was  a  man  of  decided  abilities,  and  was  much  relied  upon  by  the  ministers  in  regard  to 
America.  He  was  strongly  opposed  to  Franklin's  plan  of  union,  proposed  at  Albany  in  1754,  and 
urged  the  establishment  of  a  stamp  tax  here  as  early  as  1756.  He  had  not  the  qualities  necessary 
for  a  successful  soldier,  but  few  Englishmen  of  his  age  would  have  made  a  better  minister  of  war. 
His  literary  abilities  were  respectable,  and  besides  his  controversial  and  historical  writings  he  is  said 
to  have  been  the  author  of  two  dramatic  pieces,  "Electra,  a  Tragedy,"  and  "  The  Birth  of  Hercules, 
a  Masque."  He  finally  returned  to  Massachusetts,  and  died  at  his  seat  in  Roxbury,  on  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  March,  1776,  at  which  time  he  was  the  senior  lieutenant  general  in  the  British  army. — E. 
B.  O'Callaghan  :  Documents  Relating  to  the  Colonial  History  of  New  York,  vi.  959 


M-r.  24.]  ANOTHER  INDIAN  INCURSION.  203 


CHAPTEE   XXI. 

NEW    INCURSIONS     BY   THE     FRENCH    AND     INDIANS DIFFERENT     PLANS     FOR    THE 

PUBLIC     DEFENCE CONDITION     OF     THE     TROOPS EXPEDITION     TO     SHAWNEE 

TOWN IMPOSSIBILITY     OF    OBTAINING     RECRUITS BORDER    MURDERS    BY    THE 

ENEMY THE    COMMANDER    IN    CHIEF    CONTEMPLATES    RESIGNING THE    ENEMY 

AGAIN    RETIRE    BEYOND    THE    OHIO. 

WASHINGTON  returned  from  Boston  on  the  twenty-third  of  March, 
and  proceeded  to  Williamsburg,  where,  if  his  habits  of  life  would  not 
allow  of  ease,  he  might  be  permitted,  now  that  the  annoying  affair 
of  Dagworthy  was  settled  to  his  satisfaction,  to  look  for  a  period 
of  tranquil  life.  But  any  expectations  of  this  kind,  if  indulged, 
were  disappointed.  Hostilities  between  the  colonial  forces  of  France 
and  England  were  not  even  yet  recognised  by  a  formal  declaration 
of  war,  though  they  were  prosecuted  with  persistence  and  activity. 
Under  the  walls  of  Fort  Cumberland,  and  other  posts  nearer  the 
coast,  and,  indeed,  around  the  headquarters  of  Washington  at  Win 
chester,  the  yells  of  Indians,  led  and  managed  by  Frenchmen,  were 
now  heard.  An  express  arrived  at  the  capital  with  intelligence  of 
a  new  outbreak  within  a  day  or  two  after  Washington's  arrival  from 
the  north,  and  with  his  wonted  promptitude  he  reached  Winchester, 
to  attend  to  measures  for  its  suppression,  on  the  sixth  of  April.  He 
informed  Governor  Dinwiddie,  by  a  despatch  dated  the  next  day, 
of  the  untoward  appearance  of  affairs,  and  with  how  poor  a  front 
the  tardy  organization  of  the  British  power  could  meet  the  daring 
and  facile  enemy,  whose  savage  allies  were  murdering  in  open  day 
light  all  around  the  forts,  and  spreading  alarm  far  and  wide  among 
the  people. 

It  was  at  this  point  that  Washington  began  to  urge  most  strenu 
ously  that  line  of  policy  best  calculated  to  meet  the  designs  of 
France  on  this  continent,  and  to  bring  repose  to  the  colonists,  from 


20i  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

the  Hudson  to  the  Savannah.  The  assembly,  although  their  lib 
erality  did  not  equal  the  wishes  or  expectations  of  Dinwiddie, 
seem  to  have  been  willing  to  provide  generously  for  the  defence 
of  the  colony.  They  voted  twenty  thousand  pounds  to  meet  this 
new  incursion,  and  directed  the  augmentation  of  the  troops  in  the 
field  to  two  thousand  men.  For  a  present  invasion  of  their  terri 
tory  they  provided  without  hesitation.  But  the  plan  which  appears 
to  have  been  most  favorably  considered  in  the  assembly  seems  to 
have  been  one  which  contemplated  continual  invasions,  instead  of 
such  an  one  as,  by  well  directed  offensive  operations,  would  drive 
the  foe  from  the  region  from  which  only  invasion  could  be  expected. 
The  burgesses  proposed  to  build  a  line  of  forts  on  the  frontier,  to 
resist  all  incursions  from  the  disputed  territory :  Washington  urged 
the  driving  of  the  French  from  the  Ohio.  "  It  seemed  to  be  the 
sentiment  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  when  I  was  down,"  so  he  writes 
to  Dinwiddie  on  the  seventh  of  April,  referring  to  the  few  days  he 
had  passed  at  Williamsburg  about  the  first  of  the  month,  "  that  a 
chain  of  forts  should  be  erected  on  our  frontiers  for  the  defence  of 
the  people.  This  expedient,  in  my  opinion,  without  an  inconceiva 
ble  number  of  men,  will  never  answer  their  expectations."* 

On  the  twenty-fourth  of  April,  writing  to  Mr.  Robinson,  speaker 
of  the  assembly,  he  sets  forth  the  reasons  which  might  be  adduced 
in  favor  of  either  policy.  "  If,"  he  writes,  "  a  chain  of  forts  is  to  be 
erected  on  our  frontiers,  it  will  be  done  with  a  design  to  protect  the 
people ;  therefore,  if  these  forts  are  more  than  fifteen  or  eighteen 
miles,  or  a  day's  march  asunder,  and  garrisoned  with  less  than  eighty 
or  a  hundred  men  each,  the  object  is  not  answered,  and  for  these 
reasons :  First,  if  they  are  at  greater  distances,  it  will  be  inconve 
nient  for  the  soldiers  to  scout,  and  will  allow  the  enemy  to  pass 
between  undiscovered.  Secondly,  if  they  are  garrisoned  with  less 
than  eighty  or  a  hundred  men,  the  number  will  be  too  few  to  afford 
detachments.  Then,  again,  our  frontiers  are  so  extensive,  that  were 
the  enemy  to  attack  us  on  the  one  side,  they  might,  before  the 

*  Writings  of  Washington,  bj-  Sparks,  ii.  135. 


J£T.  24.]  DIFFERENT  POLICIES  PROPOSED.  205 

troops  on  the  other  could  reach  the  spot,  overrun  and  destroy  half 
the  country.  And  it  was  more  than  probable,  if  they  had  a  design 
in  one  direction,  they  would  make  a  feint  in  another.  We  are  also 
to  consider  what  sums  the  building  of  twenty  forts,  and  the  remov 
ing  of  stores  and  provisions  to  each  would  cost.  In  the  last  place, 
we  are  to  inquire  when  and  where  this  expense  will  end.  For, 
unless  we  endeavor  to  remove  the  cause,  we  shall  be  liable  to  the 
same  incursions  seven  years  hence  as  now,  if  the  war  continues, 
and  the  enemy  is  allowed  to  remain  on  the  Ohio"* 

Here  was  a  youth  of  twenty-four  setting  forth  the  policy  of  the 
white  haired  Cato.  The  war  should  be  carried  into  Africa.  But  if 
the  Roman  senate  could  endure,  year  after  year,  the  disheartening 
struggle  to  defend  their  dominions  against  the  invading  Carthaginian, 
till,  under  Scipio,  they  won  repose  and  victory  and  freedom  from 
invasion  by  the  policy  of  counter-invasion,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered 
at  that  the  house  of  burgesses  of  Virginia  should  persevere  in  pro 
viding  for  the  day's  defence,  and  shrink  from  undertaking  the 
arduous  work  of  relieving  the  border  from  all  liability  to  military 
disturbance  by  the  expensive  and  difficult  enterprise  of  invading, 
by  paths  uncut  or  marked  only  by  the  bones  of  their  slaughtered 
countrymen,  the  fastnesses  of  the  French  on  the  Ohio.  The  mem 
ory  of  Braddock's  defeat,  less  than  a  year  before,  though  the  circum 
stances  of  that  defeat  must  have  been  so  well  understood  by  persons 
connected  with  the  government,  had  still  a  depressing  eiFect  upon 
all  projects  proposed  for  similar  purposes.  But  Washington,  with 
his  vivid  recollections  of  the  sanguinary  time,  could  separate  the 
merits  of  the  design,  and  real  practicability  of  the  campaign,  from 
the  misfortune  of  its  result,  and  adhere  to  the  promise  of  the  for 
mer,  while  he  felt  that  it  was  possible  to  avoid  the  errors  that  led  to 
the  latter.  While  he  clearly  perceived  the  present  advantage  of 
an  offensive  policy,  he  restrained  the  impetuosity  of  his  nature,  and 
brought  himself  with  readiness  and  energy  to  do  best  that  which 

*  Subsequently,  writing  to  the  governor,  on  the  fourth  of  August,  he  says,  "I  observe  your  pro 
posal  to  Lord  Loudoun,  of  carrying  on  an  expedition  against  the  Ohio,  have  always  thought  it  the 
best  and  only  method  to  put  a  stop  to  the  incursions  of  the  enemy,  as  they  would  then  be  obliged  to 
stay  at  home  to  defend  their  own.  possession." —  See  Sparks,  ii. 


206  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

was  possible,  where  what  was  best  was,  for  the  time,  quite  beyond 
his  ability.  "I  shall  next  give  the  reasons,"  he  says,  in  his  letter  to 
Mr.  Robinson,  of  the  twenty-fourth  of  April,  which  has  just  been 
quoted,  "  which  I  think  make  for  a  defensive  plan.  If  the  neigh 
boring  colonies  refuse  us  their  assistance,  we  have  neither  strength 
nor  ability  to  conduct  an  expedition ;  and,  if  we  had,  and  were  the 
whole  to  join  us,  I  do  not  see  to  what  purpose,  since  we  have  nei 
ther  a  train  of  artillery,  artillerymen,  nor  engineers,  to  execute  any 
scheme  beyond  the  mountains  against  a  regular  fortress.  Again, 
we  have  neither  stores  nor  provisions,  arms  nor  ammunition,  wagons 
nor  horses,  in  any  degree  proportioned  to  the  service ;  and  to  un 
dertake  an  affair  where  we  are  sure  to  fall  through,  would  be  pro 
ductive  of  the  worst  consequences ;  by  another  defeat  we  should 
lose,  entirely,  the  interest  of  every  Indian.  If,  then,  we  cannot  act 
offensively  with  a  prospect  of  success,  we  must  be  on  the  defen 
sive  ;"  and  he  proceeds  to  declare  his  adhesion,  for  the  time,  to  the 
policy  of  constructing  a  chain  of  .forts. 

The  return  of  the  enemy,  in  greater  numbers,  of  which  Washing 
ton  had  advised  the  governor  on  the  seventh  of  April,  and  the 
daring  acts  of  hostility  which  they  committed,  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  chief  encampment  of  the  Virginia  forces,  could  not  fail  to 
revive  the  utmost  terror  among  the  inhabitants.  It  was  no  won 
der  that  the  fear  of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  savages,  the  burning 
of  buildings,  and  all  the  atrocities  which  marked  Indian  warfare, 
frightful  examples  of  which  were  continually  familiar  to  them,  drove 
the  scattered  dwellers  on  the  border  in  fear  and  trembling  toward 
the  settled  portions  of  the  colony,  where  they  might  hope  for  better 
protection.  Unless  a  stop  were  put  to  the  depredations  of  the 
Indians,  Washington  believed  the  Blue  Ridge  would  soon  become 
the  frontier.  He  wrote  that  it  was  injudicious  for  him  to  proceed 
to  Fort  Cumberland  until  a  considerable  accession  to  his  command 
should  be  received.  Advising  with  Lord  Fairfax  and  other  officers 
as  to  the  best  conduct  to  pursue  in  the  absence  of  any  proper  legal 
discipline  of  the  troops,  he  requested  each  captain  to  call  a  private 
muster  and  read  to  the  men  an  exhortation  he  had  prepared  for 


jET.  24.]  CONFUSION  OF  MILITARY  AFFAIRS.  207 

the  purpose.  "  Orders/'  he  said,  were  no  longer  regarded.  It  is 
quite  certain  that  the  assemblages  of  men,  drafts  or  militia,  author 
ized  by  any  act  of  the  colonial  government,  were  left  quite  without 
those  details  of  organization  which  would  have  assimilated  them  to  the 
condition  of  regular  troops.  It  was,  indeed,  an  "  uncertain  way  of 
raising  men  for  their  own  protection,"  which  the  assembly  had  hith 
erto  adopted.  The  commander  in  chief  represented  to  the  governor, 
on  the  third  of  May,  the  inconveniences  which  resulted  from  having 
no  posts  assigned  to  the  several  companies.  Dispersed  throughout 
the  country  they  could  not  readily  be  paid  or  supplied ;  so  many 
detachments  were  out  that  one  captain  or  lieutenant  might  happen 
to  command  men  of  every  company  in  the  regiment ;  of  the  eight 
pence  per  day  paid  to  each  soldier  two  pence  were  retained  for 
clothing,  and,  consequently,  when  clothing  or  other  necessaries  were 
furnished,  it  would  occur,  in  the  case  of  an  officer  transferred  from 
the  head  of  men  thus  irregularly  brought  together,  that  this  allow 
ance  could  not  be  stopped.  "  By  this,"  he  suggests,  "  the  country 
loses  money,  the  men  are  badly  supplied,  and  always  discontented." 
Clothes  soon  became  very  much  wanted,  and  soldiers  who  had  been 
two  months  enlisted,  and  had  been  able  to  get,  as  clothing,  nothing 
but  a  blanket,  shoes,  and  shirt,  were  very  "justly  dissatisfied"  at 
having  stopped  from  their  pay  the  entire  clothing  fund. 

Washington  employed  his  available  force  in  scouring  the  woods 
and  other  places  near  him  where  the  foe  were  most  apt  to  select 
their  places  of  concealment.  The  Indians  were  an  enemy  of  whose 
capacity  of  giving  trouble  he  had  a  very  thorough  knowledge.  Five 
hundred  of  them,  he  said,  had  more  power  to  annoy  the  inhabitants 
than  ten  thousand  regulars.  In  his  despatches  to  Dinwiddie,  he 
sought  to  impress  upon  that  functionary  a  sense  of  "the  advanta 
geous  way  they  had  of  fighting  in  the  woods ;"  the  cunning  and 
craft,  the  activity  and  watchfulness,  the  patience  under  suffering  and 
privation,  of  antagonists  who  prowled  about  like  wolves,  and  like  that 
animal,  accomplished  their  mischief  by  stealth,  depending  for  their 
food  as  well  upon  their  proficiency  in  hunting  game  as  upon  their 
dexterity  in  stealing  the  cattle  of  the  inhabitants.  It  was  to  avoid 


208  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

the  trouble  of  a  merciless  and  wary  foe  of  this  kind,  that  Washing 
ton  contemplated  the  necessity  of  recommending  to  the  legislature 
to  compel  the  inhabitants  in  the  region  exposed  to  live  together, 
in  townships,  working  on  each  other's  farms  by  turns,  and  to  drive 
their  cattle  into  the  thickly  settled  parts  of  the  country.  Thus 
they  would  have  no  occasion  to  fear  the  attacks  of  small  parties 
of  the  enemy,  while  the  difficulties  of  subsistence  would  prevent 

the  incursions  of  lanre  ones. 

<_j 

Major  Lewis  had,  near  the  close  of  the  winter,  made  an  attempt, 
which  by  the  seventh  of  April  was  understood  to  be  unsuccessful, 
to  reach  the  town  of  the  Shawnese.*  It  was  an  expedition  of 
which,  from  the  length  of  the  march,  Washington  had  expressed 
apprehensions,  particularly  in  a  despatch  written  to  Governor  Din- 
widdie  from  Alexandria  on  the  fourteenth  of  January.  Streams 
swollen  from  the  melting  snows  retarded  the  progress  of  the  party, 
and,  after  wandering  six  weeks  in  the  woods,  having  lost  the  canoes 
that  contained  their  supplies,  they  were  compelled  to  kill  their 
horses  for  food.  They  were  glad  to  retrace  their  way  to  the  set> 
tlements  without  accomplishing  their  mission.  Washington  how 
ever  saw  one  advantage  in  their  premature  return :  the  friendly 
Indians,  of  whom  Major  Lewis's  force  was  in  part  made  up,  would 
now  be  free  to  be"  employed  as  scouts  and  guides,  and  he  proposed 
immediately  to  send  them  forward  to  Fort  Cumberland,  where  they 
would  be  of  service  against  a  foe  of  their  own  race  and  habits.  An 
expedition  directly  west  to  the  Ohio,  to  attack  the  Indians  at  a 
point  far  below  Fort  Duquesne,  under  ordinary  circumstances 
would  have  met  his  earnest  support ;  but  when  orders  for  such  a 
movement  came  from  the  governor,  in  January,  he  was  satisfied 
that  the  hostile  tribes  had  already  moved  up  the  river  to  the 
neighborhood  of  the  fort.  Since,  however,  the  governor  was  still 
determined  upon  a  campaign  in  that  direction,  Major  Lewis  was 
directed  to  take  command  of  the  troops  destined  for  that  service. 

*  This  resort  of  the  Shawnee  tribe  of  Indians,  was  situated  at  or  near  the  junction  of  the  Ohio 
and  Great  Kenhawa  rivers,  where  Point  Pleasant,  in  Mason  county,  Virginia,  now  is.  Howe  (Vir. 
Hist.  Col.,  360)  supposes  it  was  abandoned  by  the  tribe  about  1770. 


Mr.  24.]  DEFEAT  OF  THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS.  209 

M.  Dumas,  who  commanded  the  French  and  Indians  at  Braddock's 
defeat,  after  the  death  of  M.  de  Beaujeu,  succeeded  Contrecoeur  in 
the  command  of  Fort  Duquesne.  Toward  the  close  of  March,  he 
sent  out  the  Sieur  Donville,  with  fifty  Indians,  to  observe  the  opera 
tions  of  the  Virginians  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Cumberland.  He  was 
directed  to  harass  their  •  convoy s,  burn  their  magazine  at  Conoco- 
cheague,  if  practicable,  and  use  every  effort  to  take  prisoners,  in 
order  to  obtain  from  them  further  knowledge  of  the  designs  of  the 
provincial  authorities.  These  orders  showed  great  boldness  and 
confidence  on  the  part  of  the  French,  for  Conococheague  was  in  the 
midst  of  a  populous  district,  and  the  inhabitants,  aroused  by  fear, 
were  exceedingly  vigilant.  Dumas  also  humanely  instructed  Donville 
to  use  all  his  influence  to  prevent  the  savages  from  committing  any 
cruelties  upon  those  who  might  fall  into  their  hands.  "  Honor  and 
humanity,"  he  said,  "  ought,  in  this  respect,  to  serve  as  our  guide." 

Donville  obeyed  his  superior  with  alacrity,  for  he  was  young,  and 
ambitious  of  distinction.  With  his  trained  savages,  he  traversed  the 
country  watered  by  the  upper  tributaries  of  the  Potomac,  and  spread 
alarm  among  the  settlers.  At  the  beginning  of  April  he  was  on  the 
North  river,  a  branch  of  the  Cacapehon,  in  Hampshire  county ;  and 
there  he  was  attacked  and  defeated  by  a  scouting-party  under  a 
brave  Virginian  named  Paris.  Donville  was  killed ;  and  his  scalp, 
with  the  instructions  of  Dumas  found  upon  his  person,  were  sent  to 
Washington.  That  commander  immediately  forwarded  them  to 
Governor  Dinwiddie,  with  the  expressed  hope  that  the  party  who 
jointly  claimed  the  merit  of  securing  the  trophy  would  be  properly 
rewarded,  notwithstanding  it  came  from  the  head  of  a  white  man.* 
Such  complicity  of  the  generous  Washington  in  a  revolting  practice 

*  The  reward  for  Indian  prisoners  or  scalps  was  left  to  the  discretion  of  the  governor  at  that  time, 
as  there  was  no  specific  law  upon  the  subject.  Such  law  was  soon  afterward  enacted,  and  the  price 
for  every  "hostile  Indian  taken  or  killed"  was  fixed  at  ten  pounds.  The  Virginians  had  early  pre 
cedents.  Seventy  years  before,  a  bounty  of  eight  pounds  per  head  was  offered  by  the  commissioners 
of  the  New  England  Confederation  "for  every  fighting  Indian  man  slain"  by  the  soldiers.  They 
were  also  allowed  the  benefits  arising  from  the  sales  of  such  Indians  into  slavery.  At  a  later  period, 
Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  offered  fifty,  and  even  a  hundred  pounds,  for  an  Indian  scalp ; 
and  in  Maryland,  at  one  time,  fifty  pounds  were  offered  for  a  prisoner  or  a  scalp  taken  within  that 
province.  The  cruelties  which  the  white  people  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  during  the 
early  colonial  periods,  made  the  life  of  a  savage  appear  no  more  sacred  than  that  of  a  beast  of  prey. 

14 


210  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

of  savage  warfare  seems  strangely  paradoxical,  unless  we  consider 
the  exigencies  of  the  occasion,  and  the  prevailing  habits  and  senti 
ments  of  the  border  people  at  that  time.  Strongly  as  he  opposed 
the  employment  of  Indians  in  the  War  for  Independence  twenty 
years  later,  Washington  now  as  strongly  urged  the  necessity  of  such 
an  alliance,  which  expediency  imposed.  ".Unless  we  have  Indians 
to  oppose  Indians,"  he  wrote  to  Governor  Dinwiddie,  toward  the 
close  of  April,  "  we  may  expect  but  small  success." 

Washington's  hopes  of  raising  a  sufficient  number  of  men  to  drive 
the  enemy  from  the  adjacent  mountains,  were  soon  dispelled.  The 
captains  of  his  regiment  held  the  proposed  private  muster  of  their 
companies,  read  to  them  the  "  exhortation"  of  their  colonel,  and 
communicated  his  orders  for  them  to  rendezvous  at  Winchester  on 
the  fifteenth  of  April.  Of  the  whole  sixteen  companies,  only  fifteen 
men  appeared  at  the  time  appointed.  All  manhood  seemed  to  be 
paralyzed  by  a  sense  of  impending  danger,  and  the  inhabitants  saw 
no  chance  for  safety  but  in  flight  to  the  country  eastward  of  the 
Blue  Ridge.  There  were  not  armed  men  enough  at  Winchester,  to 
spare,  to  afford  Washington  a  safe  escort  to  Fort  Cumberland,  and 
the  garrison  at  the  latter  place  was  greatly  weakened  by  the  ab 
sence  of  detachments  which  had  been  sent  out  to  keep  the  enemy 
at  bay.  The  roads  between  the  two  places  were  everywhere  in 
fested  by  the  savages ;  and  none  but  hunters,  expert  in  woodcraft, 
and  travelling  at  night,  could  make  the  journey  with  safety.  And 
one  of  these,  whom  Washington  had  sent  to  Colonel  Stephen  with 
a  message,  was  assailed  several  times  within  six  miles  of  Fort  Cum 
berland,  and  narrowly  escaped,  after  having  several  bullets  pass 
through  his  clothes,  and  his  horse  shot  under  him. 

The  danger  that  menaced  Winchester  grew  more  and  more 
alarming  every  hour.  A  scouting-party  of  one  hundred  men,  under 
Captain  John  Mercer,  sent  to  scour  the  Warm  Spring  mountain, 
were  attacked  by  mounted  Frenchmen  and  Indians  within  twenty 
miles  of  that  place.  Mercer  and  several  of  his  men  were  killed,  and 
the  remainder  were  dispersed.  The  intelligence  of  this  event,  and 
the  tales  of  horror  that  hourly  arrived,  made  the  inhabitants  of 


Wi;.-.-  •  an  aitnek  'it  au\  nr.^i  -.»:.      T'<  the  extremity  of 

t-  >.\u}»  no  eh  anew  lor  sueees-^  ?.   'Vtov  turned  to 


L*  to  Governor  Diiiwiu(fte  on.  hit;  iv^n- 
'  see/'  he  said,  v*  to  v;h;;i   uit- 
na  mself  are  reduced. 


iiosci-ip-i  •  -;is.  ihoufrii  1  Lave  o  ^-nevouM  fuvtlj 

sei^ib!  :>g  ibr  redress.     But  what   vuui  I  do  ? 

I   sco   their  situation,   know  tlieir  danger,  and    parti^pate   their 
saileririg^,  without  having  it  in  my  power  to  give  th^ni  fmtiier 
relief  than  uncertain  promises.     In  short,  I  see  inevitable  di^in?'.- 
lion  in  so  clear  that,  unless  vigorous  measure^  are  r.iikei) 

tiie  a?-emi)ly.  ::  edy  assistance  sent  iroiu  below,  rlie  por»-   in 

habitants  that  are  now  in  forte  must  inevitably  fall  1 
ma  i  nder  are  flying  before  a  barbarous  foe  ... 


viie     tti 
-    At  rhti 


lion,  as  in  after-year  H  w 
lejr  Forge,  assailed 
faitiiful  officers.     The 
vehicle  of  these  slander 
of  the  governor,  who 
already  mentioned,  in 
scheme   the  <j 


*  l,:f.  of  Waslungto 

t  A!    *!•:-'    fii'ii"    "here 

The  IV-  ,/;.;, 
other,  of  thf  r-f 
printer,  vh'.  H  .. 


JE-r.  24.]  DISTRESS  OF  THE  INHABITANTS.  211 

Winchester  expect  an  attack  at  any  moment.  In  the  extremity  of 
their  terror,  with  no  chance  for  successful  flight,  they  turned  to 
Washington,  feebly  supported  as  he  was,  as  their  chief  hope.  "  The 
women,"  says  Irving,*  "  surrounded  him,  holding  up  their  children, 
and  implored  him,  with  tears  and  cries,  to  save  them  from  the  sav 
ages."  The  heart  of  the  young  commander  was  powerfully  affected, 
and  he  wrote  a  touching  letter  to  Governor  Dinwiddie  on  the  twen 
ty-second  of  April.  "  Your  honor  may  see,"  he  said,  "  to  what  un 
happy  straits  the  distressed  inhabitants  and  myself  are  reduced.  I 
am  too  little  acquainted,  sir,  with  pathetic  language  to  attempt  a 
description  of  the  people's  distresses,  though  I  have  a  generous  soul, 
sensible  of  wrongs,  and  swelling  for  redress.  But  what  can  I  do  ? 
I  see  their  situation,  know  their  danger,  and  participate  their 
sufferings,  without  having  it  in  my  power  to  give  them  further 
relief  than  uncertain  promises.  In  short,  I  see  inevitable  destruc 
tion  in  so  clear  a  light,  that,  unless  vigorous  measures  are  taken  by 
the  assembly,  and  speedy  assistance  sent  from  below,  the  poor  in 
habitants  that  are  now  in  forts  must  inevitably  fall,  while  the  re 
mainder  are  flying  before  a  barbarous  foe....  The  supplicating  tears 
of  the  women,  and  moving  petitions  of  the  men,  melt  me  into  such 
deadly  sorrow,  that  I  solemnly  declare,  if  I  know  my  own  mind,  I 
could  offer  myself  a  willing  sacrifice  to  the  butchering  enemy,  pro 
vided  that  would  contribute  to  the  people's  ease." 

At  that  time  of  peril  for  the  inhabitants  of  northern  Virginia, 
and  of  great  perplexity  for  Washington,  jealousy  and  private  ambi 
tion,  as  in  after-years  when  he  was  in  the  midst  of  suffering  at  Val 
ley  Forge,  assailed  him  with  abuse,  and  cast  reproaches  upon  his 
faithful  officers.  The  newspaper  at  Williamsburgf  was  made  the 
vehicle  of  these  slanders,  which  emanated  from  the  personal  friends 
of  the  governor,  who  sought  to  place  Colonel  Innes,  his  favorite, 
already  mentioned,  in  the  chief  command  of  the  troops.  In  this 
scheme,  the  governor  became  an  accomplice,  or  at  least  a  pliant 

*  Life  of  Washington,  i.,  235. 

t  At  that  time  there  was  only  one  newspaper  printed  in  the  Virginia  colony.  It  was  entitled 
The  Virginia  Gazette,  and  was  printed  by  William  Hunt,  at  the  postoffice,  in  Williamsburg.  An 
other,  of  the  same  name,  was  commenced  at  Williamsburg  in  1766,  by  William  Rind,  a  Maryland 
printer,  who  was  supported  by  the  party  opposed  to  the  governor. 


212  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

instrument.  This  was  manifest  to  Washington  and  his  friends,  and 
the  injustice  stung  the  youthful  commander  with  the  keenness  of  a 
scorpion.  In  his  letter  to  the  governor  just  quoted,  after  alluding 
to  the  published  calumnies,  he  said  :  "  These  cause  me  to  lament  the 
hour  that  gave  me  a  commission,  and  would  induce  me,  at  any  other 
time  than  this  of  imminent  danger,  to  resign,  without  one  hesitating 
moment,  a  command  from  which  I  never  expect  to  reap  either  honor 
or  benefit ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  have  almost  an  absolute  certainty 
of  incurring  displeasure  below,  while  the  murder  of  helpless  families 
may  be  laid  to  my  account  here !" 

This  letter  had  a  powerful  effect  at  the  seat  of  government,  and 
created  much  solicitude  throughout  the  province.  Patriotic  men, 
especially  the  personal  friends  of  Washington,  who  knew  his  worth 
and  the  injustice  of  his  calumniators,  urged  him  to  abandon  all 
thoughts  of  resigning  while  the  danger  was  so  threatening,  and  as 
sured  him,  not  only  of  their  support,  but  of  the  weakness  of  the  few 
who  sought  to  disparage  him.  His  friend,  Colonel  Fairfax,  who  was 
one  of  the  governor's  council,  said  in  a  letter :  "  The  house  of  bur 
gesses  are  pleased  with  the  governor's  orders,*  and  depend  on  your 
vigilance  and  success.  Your  endeavors  in  the  service  and  defence 
of  your  country  must  redound  to  your  honor ;  therefore  do  not  let 
any  unavoidable  interruptions  sicken  your  mind  in  the  attempts  you 
may  pursue.  Your  good  health  and  fortune  are  the  toast  at  every 
table."  From  Mr.  Robinson,  the  speaker  of  the  assembly,  he  received 
a  most  encouraging  letter.  "  Our  hopes,  dear  George,"  he  wrote, "  are 
all  fixed  on  you,  for  bringing  our  affairs  to  a  happy  issue.  Consider 
what  fatal  consequences  to  your  country  your  resigning  the  com 
mand  at  this  time  may  be,  especially  as  there  is  no  doubt  most  of 
the  officers  will  follow  your  example.  I  hope  you  will  allow  your 
ruling  passion,  the  love  of  your  country,  to  stifle  your  resentment, 
at  least  till  the  arrival  of  Lord  Loudoun,f  or  the  meeting  of  the  as 
sembly,  when  you  may  be  sure  of  having  justice  done." — "Nothing 
but  want  of  power  in  your  country,"  wrote  Landon  Carter,  a  mem- 

*  Dinwiddie  had  ordered  out  one  half  of  the  militia  in  ten  of  the  northern  counties  of  Virginia, 
t  Lord  Loudoun  had  been  appointed  commander-in-chief  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  and 
also  governor  of  Virginia. 


Mr.  24.]  CHAIN  OF  FORTS.  215 

Washington.*  He  believed  that  three  or  four  strong  garrisons,  sit 
uated  within  the  borders  of  settlements,  would  be  far  more  effective 
and  certainly  less  expensive,  than  a  score  of  weak  ones  in  the  wil 
derness,  stretching  along  a  line  of  three  or  four  hundred  miles.  The 
governor,  too,  disapproved  of  the  plan  of  the  assembly.  He  had 
already  submitted  to  the  board  of  trade  a  project  for  a  much  more 
extensive  chain  of  forts.  These  were  to  embrace  the  whole  line  of 
frontier  from  Crown  Point,  on  Lake  Champlain,  to  the  country  of 
the  Creek  Indians  in  Alabama.^  But  both  yielded  to  the  views  of 
the  assembly ;  and  Colonel  Washington,  in  conformity  with  his  in 
structions,  drew  up  a  plan  and  fixed  the  several  positions  of  twenty- 
three  forts.  He  also  sent  out  parties  to  erect  them,  and  gave  his 
personal  supervision  to  those  that  were  within  a  reasonable  distance 
of  his  headquarterrs  at  Winchester. 

In  these  labors,  Washington  seems  not  to  have  been  favored  with 
the  aid  of  "  The  Gentlemen  Associators.'r  He  had  expected  none, 
and  therefore  he  wras  not  disappointed.  As  late  as  the  twenty-third 
of  May,  they  had  not  appeared,  and  he  wrote  to  the  governor — "I 
am  heartily  glad  that  you  have  fixed  upon  these  gentlemen  to  point 
out  the  places  for  erecting  forts,  but  regret  to  find  their  motions  so 
slow."  There  was  deep  meaning  and  keen  irony  for  the  governor 
and  his  friends  in  this  passage,  which  those  in  power  at  Williams- 
burg  undoubtedly  perceived.  But  Dinwiddie  was  both  cautious 
and  crafty ;  and  at  this  very  time,  wrhen  he  was  casting  obstacles  in 
the  way  of  Washington's  success,  he  joined  in  paying  a  just  compli 
ment  to  his  merits.  The  council  and  house  of  burgesses  had  agreed 
upon  a  representation  to  the  king,  in  which  Washington  and  other 
officers  were  recommended  to  his  majesty  as  worthy  of  promotion 
to  the  regular  army.  Unwilling  to  openly  oppose  the  Virginia  as 
sembly  in  this  matter,  and  perceiving  a  chance  for  his  favorite 

*  An  expression  of  his  views  is  given  on  page  204. 

t  The  governor  proposed  to  furnish  the  funds  for  erecting  these  forte,  by  a  poll-tax  of  one  shilling 
sterling  for  two  years  throughout  all  the  colonies,  to  he  levied  by  parliament ;  and  to  support  the 
garrisons  by  a  perpetual  land-tax  of  two  shillings  on  every  one  hundred  acres  of  land.  He  estimated 
the  number  of  taxable  polls  in  the  colonies  at  one  million,  and  hence  the  tax  would  amount  to  fifty 
thousand  pounds  a  year.  He  also  estimated  the  amount  of  the  land-tax  at  sixty  thousand  pounds 
a  vear. 


216  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

Colonel  Innes,  by  the  removal  of  Washington  to  another  field  of 
duty,  Dinwiddie  wrote  as  follows  to  Major-General  Abercrombie  on 
the  twenty-eighth  of  May :  "  As  we  are  told  the  earl  of  Loudoun  is 
to  raise  three  regiments  on  this  continent,  on  the  British  establish 
ment,  I  do  not  venture  to  trouble  him  immediately  on  his  arrival 
with  any  recommendations ;  but,  good  sir,  give  me  leave  to  pray 
your  interest  with  his  lordship  in  favor  of  Colonel  George  Washing 
ton,  who,  I  will  venture  to  say,  is  a  very  deserving  gentleman,  and 
has  from  the  beginning  commanded  the  forces  of  this  dominion. 
General  Braddock  had  so  high  an  esteem  for  his  merit,  that  he 
made  him  one  of  his  aids-de-camp ;  and,  if  he  had  survived,  I  believe 
he  would  have  provided  handsomely  for  him  in  the  regulars.  He 
is  a  person  much  beloved  here,  and  he  has  gone  through  many 
hardships  in  the  service,  and  I  really  think  he  has  great  merit,  and 
believe  he  can  raise  more  men  here  than  any  one  present  that  I 
know.  If  his  lordship  will  be  so  good  as  to  promote  him  in  the 
British  establishment,  I  think  he  will  answer  my  recommendation." 
These,  no  doubt,  were  the  true  sentiments  of  Dinwiddie,  yet  we  are 
justified  by  events  in  suspecting  him  of  selfish  motives  in  expressing 
them  at  this  time.  And  Washington  undoubtedly  was  sincere  in  his 
irony,  when  he  expressed  his  gladness  at  the  appointment  of  "  The 
Gentlemen  Associators"  to  determine  upon  the  localities  of  the 
frontier  forts,  for  he  was  perfectly  willing  to  allow  others  to  take 
the  responsibility  of  doing  that  which  his  judgment  did  not  approve. 
But  while  he  was  willing  to  yield  thus  much  to  necessarily  incompe 
tent  men,  he  had  just  reason  to  complain  of  the  continual  interfe 
rence  of  civil  officers  in  military  matters,  to  his  great  personal  an 
noyance  and  the  detriment  of  the  service.  The  governor  himself, 
who  was  unskilled  in  military  affairs,  was  so  exceedingly  tenacious 
of  his  authority,  that  he  undertook,  at  the  distance  of  two  hundred 
miles  from  the  scene  of  action,  to  regulate  the  principal  operations 
of  the  army.*  And  either  from  natural  stupidity,  or  a  wicked  de 
sire  to  perplex  the  popular  young  commander,  of  whom  he  was 
jealous,  Dinwiddie  communicated  orders  and  replies  to  Washington 

*  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington,  i.,  84. 


jET.  24.]  THE  GOVERNOR'S  AMBIGUITY.  217 

in  terms  so  ambiguous,  that  frequently  he  could  not  determine  the 
governor's  meaning.  Of  this  he  complained  bitterly  in  letters  to 
his  friend  the  speaker  of  the  assembly.  "  The  orders  I  receive/'  he 
said,  "  are  full  of  ambiguity.  I  am  left,  like  a  wanderer  in  the  wil 
derness,  to  proceed  at  hazard.  I  am  answerable  for  consequences, 
and  blamed,  without  the  privilege  of  defence."  Later  in  the  season, 
after  having  visited  Williamsburg,  and  urged  upon  the  governor  the 
necessity  of  abandoning  Fort  Cumberland  as  a  place  of  frontier  de- 
posite,  he  applied  for  positive  directions  in  the  matter.  Washington 
mentioned  the  affair  in  a  letter  to  Speaker  Robinson,  and  said  :  "  The 
following  is  an  exact  copy  of  the  governor's  answer :  '  Fort  Cumber 
land  is  a  king's  fort,  and  built  chiefly  at  the  charge  of  the  colony, 
therefore  properly  under  our  direction  until  a  governor  is  appoint 
ed.'  Now,  whether  I  am  to  understand  this  ay  or  no,  to  the  plain, 
simple  question  asked — 'Is  the  fort  to  be  continued  or  removed?' 
— I  know  not.  But  in  all  important  matters,  I  am  directed  in  this 
ambiguous  and  uncertain  way." 

Although  Washington  warmly  remonstrated  with  Speaker  Robin 
son  against  the  perplexing  interferences  and  ambiguous  orders  of 
the  governor,  he  endured  all  with  such  exemplary  dignity  and 
patience,  and  performed  the  duties  assigned  him  so  diligently  and 
faithfully,  that  he  won  for  himself  not  only  the  sympathy  but  the 
highest  esteem  and  admiration  of  the  patriotic  party  in  the  house 
of  burgesses,  and  of  the  people  at  large.  This  dignity  and  forbear 
ance  irritated  Dinwiddie  and  the  little  Scottish  faction  who  sought 
to  disgust  Washington  with  the  service  and  cause  him  to  resign,  for 
it  foiled  every  movement  in  favor  of  Innes,  and  taught  the  governor 
his  own  weakness  and  the  abounding  strength  of  the  young  man  he 
wished  to  humble.  This  irritation  was  increased  by  Washington's 
free  comments  concerning  military  affairs  on  the  frontier,  and  espe 
cially  in  relation  to  the  absurdity  of  retaining  Fort  Cumberland ; 
and  Dinwiddie,  with  the  mean  spirit  of  jealousy  and  retaliation, 
made  such  representations  to  Lord  Loudoun  as  drew  from  him  an 
order  in  which  was  an  implied  censure  of  the  young  commander-in- 
chief.  In  a  letter  to  the  governor,  after  giving  a  peremptory  order 


218  WASHINGTON:    A   BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

to  keep  Fort  Cumberland,  Loudoun  said :  "  I  can  not  agree  with 
Colonel  Washington  in  not  drawing  in  the  posts  from  the  stockade 
forts,  in  order  to  defend  that  advanced  one ;  and  I  should  imagine 
much  more  of  the  frontier  will  be  exposed  by  retiring  your  ad 
vanced  posts  near  Winchester,  where  I  understand  he  is  retired ;  for, 
from  your  letter,  I  take  it  for  granted  he  has  before  this  executed 
his  plan,  without  waiting  for  any  advice.  If  he  leaves  any  of  the 
great  quantity  of  stores  behind,  it  will  be  very  unfortunate,  and  he 
ought  to  consider  that  it  must  be  at  his  own  door." 

Loudoun,  who  was  remarkable  for  his  laziness  and  indecision, 
wrote,  of  course,  without  knowledge.  He  was  too  indolent  and 
tardy  to  satisfy  himself  by  proper  inquiries  and  form  a  judgment 
therefrom,  but  was  content  to  echo  the  suggestions  of  Dinwiddie, 
whose  object  was  thus  attained.  Strengthened  by  this  expressed 
opinion  of  high  authority,  the  governor  at  once  played  the  part  of 
a  wilful  boy,  determined  to  have  his  own  way,  right  or  wrong.  He- 
directed  the  garrisons  to  be  withdrawn  from  the  smaller  frontier 
forts,  and  these,  with  most  of  the  troops  at  Winchester,  were  ordered 
to  the  almost  useless  Fort  Cumberland,  which  wras  to  become  the 
headquarters  of  the  army.  The  most  exposed  points  were  thus 
weakened,  and  an  unnecessary  force  was  gathered  where  it  was  not 
needed,  and  could  not  be  made  immediately  available  in  the  event 
of  an  incursion  of  the  enemy.  Thus  all  the  wise  plans  of  Washing 
ton  were  deranged  and  reversed,  and  the  labors  of  the  whole  army 
for  many  weeks  were  rendered  almost  abortive. 

A  less  patriotic  officer  than  Colonel  Washington  would  have  left 
the  service  under  such  trying  circumstances,  but,  true  to  his  instinc 
tive  love  of  country,  his  sense  of  responsibility,  and  his  self-sacrifi 
cing  nature,  he  stood  firm  while  danger  impended,  yet  not  without 
complaining.  To  his  sympathizing  friend,  the  speaker,  he  wrote : 
"  The  late  order  reverses,  confuses,  and  incommodes  everything ;  to 
say  nothing  of  the  extraordinary  expense  of  carriage,  disappoint 
ment,  losses,  and  alterations,  which  must  fall  heavy  on  the  country. 
Whence  it  arises,  or  why,  I  am  truly  ignorant ;  but  my  strongest 
representations  of  matters  relative  to  the  peace  of  the  frontiers  are 


MT.  24.]  PAY  AND  DESERTION.  219 

disregarded,  as  idle  and  frivolous ;  my  propositions  and  measures,  as 
partial  and  selfish ;  and  all  my  sincerest  endeavors  for  the  service 
of  my  country  are  perverted  to  the  worst  purposes.  My  orders  are 
dark,  doubtful,  and  uncertain ;  to-day  approved,  to-morrow  con 
demned.  Left  to  act  and  proceed  at  hazard,  accountable  for  the  con 
sequences,  and  blamed  without  the  benefit  of  defence,  if  you  can 
think  my  situation  capable  of  exciting  the  smallest  degree  of  envy, 
or  affording  the  least  satisfaction,  the  truth  is  yet  hidden  from  you, 
and  you  entertain  notions  very  different  from  the  reality  of  the 
case.  However,  I  am  determined  to  bear  up  under  all  these  em 
barrassments  some  time  longer,  in  hope  of  a  better  regulation  on 
the  arrival  of  Lord  Loudoun,  to  whom  I  look  for  the  future  fate  of 
Virginia." 

Another  source  of  great  annoyance  to  the  commander-in-ehief 
was  the  prevailing  practice  of  desertion,  by  which  his  little  army 
was  continually  weakened,  and  its  moral  stamina  assailed.  The 
pay  of  the  soldiers  was  altogether  inadequate ;  and  in  this,  as  in 
other  appropriations  and  arrangements  made  by  the  assembly,  a 
policy  entirely  too  narrow  and  parsimonious  was  pursued.  The 
common  soldier  received  only  eight  pence  per  day,  out  of  which 
two  pence  were  stopped  for  his  clothing.  This  pay  was  less  than 
in  any  other  part  of  the  continent.  Foreseeing  the  inevitable  dis 
contents  of  the  soldiers,  the  assembly  had  provided  for  the  payment 
of  two  hundred  pounds  of  tobacco  for  every  deserter  who  should  be 
arrested  and  returned  to  headquarters.  Instead  of  furnishing  Wash 
ington  with  means  to  pay  for  such  deserters  immediately,  he  was 
only  allowed  to  give  the  captors  certificates  of  the  fact,  wrhich  wrere 
to  be  presented,  in  due  time  and  form,  to  a  court  of  claims,  and 
there  must  lie,  perhaps,  as  he  wrote  to  Robinson,  "  till  they  are  quite 
forgotten."  The  result  was  as  might  have  been  anticipated.  No 
body  would  apprehend  a  deserter.  And  so  much  dissatisfaction  was 
created,  that  Washington  expressed  his  opinion  that  many,  "  rather 
than  apprehend  one,  would  aid  fifty  to  escape,"  and  that  too  among 
the  Virginians. 

It  was  toward  midsummer  when  Washington  commenced  in  ear- 


220  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

nest  the  erection  of  the  chain  of  frontier  forts  already  mentioned. 
He  had  been  waiting  week  after  week  for  reinforcements  from  the 
militia,  for  there  was  danger  in  sending  out  such  small  detachments 
as  necessity  imposed,  in  the  prosecution  of  the  work.  But  his  calls 
were  almost  in  vain,  while  he  was  continually  urged  to  press  for 
ward  the  work  of  frontier  defences.  The  military  ardor  of  "  The 
Gentlemen  Associators,"  who  were  to  assist  him,  seems  to  have  en 
tirely  subsided,  for  we  hear  nothing  more  of  them ;  and  the  direc 
tion  of  the  chain,  and  the  position  of  the  principal  forts,  were  deter 
mined  by  a  council  of  officers  called  by  Washington,  who  assembled 
at  Fort  Cumberland  about  the  first  of  July. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  enemy  had  been  seen  in  small  bands,  hov 
ering  upon  the  Alleghanies,  and  striking  murderous  blows  here  and 
there  among  the  more  remote  frontier  settlers.  Continual  fear 
chilled  the  hearts  of  the  few  inhabitants  who  remained  west  of  the 
Blue  Ridge.  Soon  alarm  after  alarm  came  upon  almost  every 
breeze  from  the  west  and  north ;  and  before  the  close  of  summer, 
the  settlers  upon  the  upper  waters  of  the  Potomac  were  flying  in 
great  confusion.  Conococheague  and  the  surrounding  country  were 
entirely  deserted,  and  the  inhabitants  farther  down  the  Virginia  side 
of  the  Potomac  were  in  motion.  These  had  appealed  to  Washing 
ton  for  protection,  but  he  was  almost  powerless.  He  could  not  send 
a  sufficient  force  for  the  purpose,  without  suspending  the  public 
works,  and  yet  he  knew  not  how  to  deny  the  suppliants.  "  It  is 
with  infinite  concern,"  he  wrote  to  Lord  Fairfax,*  at  the  close  of 
August,  "  that  I  see  the  distresses  of  the  people  and  hear  their  com 
plaints,  without  being  able  to  afford  them  relief."  And  in  the  same 

*  This  was  Thomas,  the  sixth  Lord  Fairfax,  who  possessed  a  tract  of  land,  estimated  to  contain 
five  millions  of  acres,  lying  between  the  Potomac  and  Rappahannock  rivers,  in  Virginia,  a  region 
known  as  the  Northern  Neck.  His  kinsman,  William  Fairfax,  managed  this  estate  for  awhile,  and 
in  1739  Lord  Fairfax  himself  came  to  Virginia.  At  the  end  of  a  year  he  returned  to  England,  hut 
came  back  in  1745,  and  remained  in  Virginia  until  his  death,  in  1732,  when  he  was  in  the  ninety- 
second  year  of  his  age. 

Lord  Fairfax  resided  several  years  with  his  relative,  at  his  beautiful  estate  of  Belvoir.  He  finally 
crossed  the  Blue  Ridge  to  the  Shenandoah  valley,  built  a  fine  mansion  a  few  miles  from  Winchester, 
which  he  named  Greenway  Court,  and  there  put  a  farm  under  the  highest  cultivation.  There  ho 
lived  in  plain  elegance,  and  held  offices  of  responsibility.  He  was  lieutenant  of  Frederick  county, 
presided  in  the  courts  at  Winchester,  and  was  superintendent  of  the  public  roads.  He  was  an  ac 
complished  scholar,  and  was  a  contributor  to  the  Spectator  in  eai'lier  life. 


Mr.  24.]  TOUR  OF  OBSERVATION.  221 

letter  he  urged  Fairfax  to  send  him  some  of  the  militia  of  Frederick 
county,  over  whom  he  had  control,  to  save  the  settlements  from 
total  desolation.  Fortunately,  these  incursions  of  the  enemy  did 
not  extend  far  into  the  settlements,  yet  the  fears  of  the  people  were 
kept  continually  alive  by  dreadful  forebodings. 

From  the  beginning,  as  we  have  seen,  Washington  had  strongly 
urged  the  necessity  of  acting  on  the  offensive,  and,  by  penetrating 
the  country  beyond  the  Alleghanies  with  a  respectable  force,  to 
inspire  the  invaders  with  awe,  and  compel  them  to  remain  in  the 
wilderness  to  defend  their  own  domain.  While  pursuing  the  oppo 
site  and  temporizing  policy  dictated  by  the  governor  and  assembly, 
he  continued  to  express  his  convictions,  from  time  to  time,  as  op 
portunity  offered,  that  the  only  successful  measure  of  relief  for  the 
settlements,  and  basis  for  permanent  repose,  would  be  a  counter- 
invasion.  While  at  Mount  Vernon  on  private  business,  toward  the 
close  of  September,  he  again  pressed  this  subject  upon  the  governor, 
in  a  letter.  "  We  may  form  many  schemes,"  he  said,  "  to  defend 
ourselves,  but  experience  will  show  that  none  but  removing  the 
cause  of  the  difficulties  [by  invading  the  Ohio  region]  will  prove 
effectual.  Unless  the  assembly  concerts  some  measures  to  augment 
the  military  force,  the  country,  I  fear,  must  inevitably  fall.  The 
frontiers,  within  twelve  months,  have  been  totally  deserted  for  fifty 
miles  and  upwards  from  north  to  south,  and  all  below  that  distance 

greatly  thinned  by  the  removal  of  numbers I  believe  I  might 

add,"  he  continued,  "  that  no  person,  who  regards  his  character,  will 
undertake  a  command  without  the  means  of  preserving  it;  since 
his  conduct  is  culpable  for  all  misfortunes,  and  never  right  but  when 
successful." 

On  the  twenty-ninth  of  September,  Colonel  Washington  left  Win 
chester  on  a  tour  of  observation  as  far  as  the  southwestern  frontier, 
on  the  borders  of  North  Carolina.  In  this  tour  he  visited  all  of  the 
forts  and  stockades,  and  was  enabled  to  form  a  just  opinion  of  their 
value  as  defences,  and  of  the  actual  condition  of  the  settlers.  Dis 
tress  everywhere  prevailed.  The  Indians  had  broken  into  almost 
every  little  settlement,  and  had  spread  death  and  desolation,  with 


222  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

the  knife  and  torch,  along  the  whole  western  frontier  of  Virginia. 
He  found  the  garrisons  in  wretched  condition.  The  men  were  few, 
idle,  insubordinate,  and  improvident.  None  of  the  forts  were  in  a 
posture  of  defence,  and  the  Indians  often  murdered  helpless  women 
near  them,  or  carried  off  children  and  property  from  the  very  gates 
of  the  stockades.  They  kept  no  guard,  few  of  the  captains  were  on 
duty,  and  many  private  soldiers  were  away  on  leave,  attending  to 
their  personal  affairs.  The  soldiers  often  refused  assistance  to  a 
neighboring  garrison  when  assailed,  and  the  inhabitants  were  taught 
by  these  delinquencies  to  regard  them  as  burdens  to  themselves 
and  the  colony,  rather  than  as  defenders. 

The  militia,  drafted  generally  for  only  one  month's  duty,  were 
no  better.  They  were  always  tardy  in  their  movements,  wasteful 
of  provisions,  "  obstinate,  self-willed,  perverse,  of  little  or  no  service 
to  the  people,  and  very  burdensome  to  the  country."*  Upon  them 
the  inhabitants  placed  no  reliance,  and  so  they  were  literally  with 
out  any  defenders  against  the  savages.  They  petitioned  Colonel 
Washington  in  the  most  earnest  manner  for  companies  of  his  regi 
ment,  but  it  was  not  in  his  power  to  assist  them.  He  could  only 
promise  to  lay  their  case  before  the  governor  and  the  house  of  bur 
gesses,  and  use  his  best  endeavors  to  promote  effectual  measures  for 
their  security .f 

After  presenting  the  state  of  affairs  along  the  frontiers,  in  graphic 
detail,  to  the  governor,  Washington  remarked :  "  Perhaps  it  may  be 
thought  that  I  am  partial  in  my  relation,  and  reflect  unjustly.  I 
really  do  not,  sir.  I  scorn  to  make  any  unjust  remarks  on  the  be 
havior  of  the  militia,  as  much  as  I  despise  and  contemn  the  persons 

who  detract  from  mine  and  the  character  of  the  regiment.     Were 

£ 

*  Washington's  Report  to  Governor  Dinwiddie. 

t  It  is  proper  to  state  that  there  were  grave  difficulties  in  the  way  of  furnishing  soldiers  for  distant 
garrisons.  The  population  of  Virginia,  at  that  time,  was  estimated  by  Governor  Dinwiddie  to  be 
two  hundred  and  ninety-three  thousand,  four  hundred  and  seventy-two,  of  whom  one  hundred  and 
seventy-three  thousand,  three  hundred  and  sixteen,  were  white,  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  thou 
sand,  one  hundred  and  fifty-six,  were  black.  The  militia  were  computed  at  thirty-five  thousand 
men  fit  to  bear  arms.  Dinwiddie  wrote  to  one  of  the  British  secretaries  of  state  :  "We  dare  not 
venture  to  part  with  any  of  our  white  men  any  distance,  as  we  must  have  a  watchful  eye  over  our 
negro  slaves,  who  are  upwards  of  one  hundred  thousand."  —  Sparks'  Writings  of  Washington,  note, 
ii.,  154. 


/ET.  24.]  EFFECT  OF  WASHINGTON'S  REPORT.  223 

it  not,  that  I  consult  the  good  of  the  public,  and  think  these  garri 
sons  merit  attention ;  I  should  not  deem  it  worth  mentioning.  I 
only  wish  to  make  the  country  sensible,  how  ardently  I  have  stud 
ied  to  promote  its  cause,  and  desire  very  sincerely,  that  my  succes 
sor  may  fill  my  place  more  to  its  satisfaction,  in  every  respect,  than 
I  have  been  able  to  do.  I  mentioned  in  my  last  that  I  did  not 
think  a  less  number  than  two  thousand  men  would  be  sufficient  to 
defend  our  extensive  and  much-exposed  frontiers  from  the  ravages 
of  the  enemy.  I  have  not  had  one  reason  to  alter  my  opinion, 
but  many  to  strengthen  and  confirm  it.  And  I  flatter  myself  that 
the  country  will,  when  my  determinations  are  known,  be  convinced 
that  I  have  no  sinister  views,  no  vain  motives  of  commanding  a 
number  of  men,  wrhich  urge  me  to  recommend  this  number ;  but 
that  it  proceeds  from  the  knowledge  I  have  acquired  of  the  country 
and  people  to  be  defended."  In  a  subsequent  letter  upon  the  same 
subject,  he  remarked :  "  As  defensive  measures  are  evidently  insuffi 
cient  for  the  security  and  safety  of  the  country,  I  hope  no  argu 
ments  are  requisite  to  prove  the  necessity  of  altering  them  to  a 
vigorous  offensive  war,  in  order  to  remove  the  evil." 

This  last  letter  here  referred  to  was  accompanied  by  the  report  of 
a  council  of  officers,  which  had  been  held  at  Fort  Cumberland,  pur 
suant  to  a  proposition  of  Dinwiddie  himself.  In  that  report  the 
policy  of  retaining  Fort  Cumberland  was  impliedly  though  not  ex 
plicitly  condemned.  On  the  back  of  the  report,  Washington  had 
written  his  own  views,  and  suggested  the  propriety  of  erecting  a 
fortress  in  its  stead  near  the  Little  Meadows,  at  the  joint  expense 
of  Virginia,  Maryland,  and  Pennsylvania,  whose  frontiers  were 
equally  exposed  to  the  enemy.  This  expression  of  opinion  by 
Washington  the  governor  chose  to  consider  impertinent,  while  the 
colonel's  report  of  his  tour  of  observation,  further  irritated  the  gov 
ernor  because  it  confirmed  the  superior  judgment  of  the  young 
commander-in-chief,  and  loudly  condemned  the  actions  of  Dinwiddie 
and  the  assembly. 

The  governor's  reply  was  discourteous  and  evidently  ill-humored, 
and  elicited  from  Washington  a  rejoinder  full  of  dignity,  and  mer- 


224  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

ited  rebuke  for  the  insolent  executive.  It  was  written  at  Alexan 
dria,  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  November.  After  disclaiming  any 
disrespect  to  superiors,  he  proceeded  to  vindicate  his  course.  Hav 
ing  referred  to  his  services  in  making  the  dangerous  and  fatiguing 
tour  to  the  southwest,  for  no  other  purpose  than  the  public  good, 
Colonel  Washington  remarked :  "  I  am  sorry  to  find  that  this,  and 
my  best  endeavors  of  late,  meet  with  unfavorable  constructions. 
What  it  proceeds  from,  I  know  not.  If  my  open  and  disinterested 
way  of  writing  and  speaking  has  the  air  of  pertness  and  freedom, 
I  shall  correct  my  error  by  acting  reservedly,  and  I  shall  take  care 
to  obey  my  orders  without  offering  anything  more."  He  then  pro 
ceeded  to  comply  with  Dinwiddie's  peremptory  orders  to  march  with 
the  greater  portion  of  his  force  at  Winchester  to  Fort  Cumberland, 
and  make  that  his  headquarters,  leaving  the  far  more  important 
post  of  Fort  Loudoun  with  a  weak  garrison  in  command  of  a  sub 
altern,  and  a  vast  amount  of  public  stores  destitute  of  all  protection. 
"  So,"  Washington  said,  in  the  letter  just  quoted  from,  "  if  I  comply 
with  my  orders,  which  I  shall  literally  do,  if  I  can,  not  a  man  will 
be  left  there  to  secure  the  works,  or  defend  the  king's  stores,  which 
are  almost  wholly  removed  to  that  place." 


JEr.  24.]  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  FRONTIER. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

INDIAN  DEPREDATIONS  ON  THE  PENNSYLVANIA  FRONTIER  —  ARMSTRONG'S  EXPE 
DITION DESTRUCTION  OP  KITTANNING GOOD  EFFECTS  OF  THIS  CHASTISE 
MENT DECLARATION  OF  WAR  BY  ENGLAND  AND  FRANCE ASPECT  OF  THE 

ANGLO-AMERICAN    COLONIES  —  PREPARATIONS    FOR    THE    CAMPAIGN    OF    1755 

FRENCH    FORTIFICATIONS  —  THE    ROYAL    AMERICAN    REGIMENT TARDINESS    OF 

BRITISH    COMMANDERS PROVINCIAL    TROOPS    AT    ALBANY DIFFICULTIES    RE 
SPECTING  RANK FATAL  DELAYS IMPORTANCE  AND  EXPOSURE  OF   OSWEGO 

MOVEMENTS    OF   MONTCALM CAPTURE    OF    OSWEGO  —  ABANDONMENT   OF   NOR 
THERN   EXPEDITIONS. 

WHILE  the  settlers  along  the  frontiers  of  Virginia  were  suffering 
dreadfully  from  continual  fear  and  frequent  invasions,  their  imme 
diate  neighbors  in  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  were  equally  an 
noyed  by  the  foe.  King  Shingis,  the  head  sachem  of  the  Delawares, 
already  mentioned  as  Washington's  ally  in  1753,  was  now  active 
with  the  French.  He  was  small  in  person  but  great  in  prowess, 
always  cruel  and  relentless,  and  continually  thirsted  for  blood  and 
plunder.  He  and  another  chief  made  their  power  felt  all  over  the 
region  westward  of  the  Susquehanna.  Toward  the  close  of  1755, 
they  led  their  warriors  eastward,  and  desolated  the  settlements 
almost  to  the  Delaware  river. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1756  these  depredations  were  renewed  by 
parties  of  French  and  Indians.  To  guard  against  them,  the  prov 
ince  of  Pennsylvania  erected  a  chain  of  forts  and  blockhouses  along 
the  Kit  tanning  hills  from  the  Delaware  river  to  the  Maryland  line  ;* 
and  eight  companies,  commanded  by  Colonel  John  Armstrong,  of 
Carlisle,  were  established  in  the  country  west  of  the  Susquehanna. 
Yet  these  forts  and  troops  did  not  fully  protect  the  inhabitants. 

*  These  fortifications  were  erected  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Franklin,  who  had  accepted  a  colo 
nel's  commission,  and  undertook  the  command  of  the  volunteer  militia  on  the  frontier.  These  vol 
unteers  did  not  meet  the  expectations  of  the  people  in  general,  and  Franklin  soon  discovering  that 
he  was  not  particularly  fitted  for  military  command,  retired  from  office. 

15 


226  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

The  foe  was  wary  and  expert ;  and  Captain  Jacobs,  one  of  the  most 
desperate  of  the  Delaware  chiefs,  boasted  with  some  truth  that  he 
could  "  take  any  fort  that  would  catch  fire."  Scalping-parties  swept 
through  the  valleys  of  the  Kiskiminitas  and  Juniata,  and  over  the 
adjacent  country,  almost  to  Fort  Cumberland.  In  July  they  ap 
peared  in  Sherman's  valley ;  and,  storming  Fort  Granby,  at  Lewis- 
town,  they  carried  away  many  prisoners  to  their  chief  town  of  Kit- 
tanning,  on  the  Alleghany  river.  In  these  incursions  from  the  west, 
the  Indians  had  killed  full  one  thousand  frontier  settlers. 

A  thorough  chastisement  of  the  marauders  was  now  determined 
upon;  and  at  the  close  of  August,  Colonel  Armstrong,  with  two 
hundred  and  eighty  provincials,  marched  from  Fort  Shirley,  on  the 
Juniata,  to  destroy  the  nest  of  bloody  vultures  a,t  Kittanning.  He 
was  accompanied  by  Captain  Hugh  Mercer,  who  longed  to  serve  his 
country,  and  to  avenge  the  blood  of  his  companions  that  had  flowed 
so  freely  upon  the  banks  of  the  Monongahela  the  year  before.  Kap- 
idly  and  stealthily  the  avengers  marched  over  the  lofty  ridges  and 
through  the  dark  defiles  of  the  Alleghanies,  and  on  the  evening  of 
the  seventh  of  September  they  arrived  near  the  doomed  Indian  vil 
lage.  The  savages,  unsuspicious  of  danger,  were  gathered  arovmd 
fires  near  by,  and  with  whoops,  and  yells,  and  stirring  songs,  were 
celebrating  their  murderous  exploits,  by  the  horrid  scalp-dance. 
The  night  wore  away,  their  orgies  ceased,  the  fires  burned  low; 
some  of  the  Indians  retired  to  their  huts,  and  others  lay  down  and 
fell  asleep  by  the  smouldering  embers ;  the  bright  moon  went  down 
behind  the  hills,  and  all  was  dark  and  silent. 

Dividing  his  little  army,  Colonel  Armstrong  directed  the  attack 
to  be  made  simultaneously  against  the  huts  and  the  sleepers  in  the 
open  air.  At  the  first  fire,  the  whole  village  was  aroused.  The 
women  and  children  fled  to  the  woods,  and  the  warriors,  encouraged 
by  the  voice  of  Captain  Jacobs,  fought  desperately,  and  slew  several 
of  their  assailants.  The  huts  were  fired  by  the  provincials,  and 
Jacobs  was  summoned  to  surrender.  He  proudly  refused,  saying, 
"I  am  a  man,  and  will  not  be  a  prisoner." — "Then  you  will  be 
burnt,"  answered  his  summoner.  "Not  till  I  have  killed  four  or 


JEr.  24.]  DESTRUCTION  OF  KITTANNING.  227 

five !"  he  said.  Then  the  flames  crept  from  roof  to  roof,  and  in  the 
house  of  Jacobs,  which  began  to  glow  with  heat,  a  warrior  chanted 
the  defiant  death-song.  At  length  the  fire  and  smoke  expelled  the 
Indians.  Some  were  shot,  and  others  escaped.  Among  the  former 
was  the  savage  leader,  and  also  his  giant  son,  a  young  warrior  seven 
feet  in  height,  who  had  distinguished  himself  at  Fort  Granby.  Soon 
all  the  dwellings,  thirty  in  number,  were  in  flames ;  and  when  the 
sun  arose,  Kittanning  was  a  smoking  ruin,  and  amid  the  ashes  lay 
nearly  forty  of  the  slain  savages.  Eleven  white  prisoners  were 
released,  and  the  victory  was  complete. 

The  provincials  did  not  escape  unharmed.  Seventeen  of  them 
were  killed,  thirteen  were  wounded,  and  nineteen  were  missing  at 
roll-call.  Among  the  wounded  was  Captain  Mercer,  who  was  left 
behind,  and,  after  a  slow  and  solitary  journey  through  the  wilder 
ness,  he  reached  Fort  Cumberland  when  almost  famished.  God,  in 
his  wisdom,  had  preserved  him  for  a  nobler  martyrdom  in  the  ser 
vice  of  his  country  twenty  years  later,  when  he  fell  in  battle  at 
Princeton. 

This  chastisement  of  the  Indians  was  effectual,  and  secured  peace 
to  the  Pennsylvania  frontier  for  some  time.*  The  savages  were 
thoroughly  alarmed.  It  was  the  first  time  that  the  war  had  been 
carried  into  their  country,  where  they  fancied  themselves  secure, 
and  it  had  precisely  the  effect  which  always  presented  itself  to  the 
mind  of  Washington,  when  urging  upon  the  Virginia  authorities 
the  necessity  of  offensive  measures.  Had  those  authorities  listened 

*  The  city  council  of  Philadelphia  passed  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Colonel  Armstrong  and  his  officers 
for  their  gallant  services,  and  presented  the  commander  with  a  piece  of  plate  and  a  silver  medal. 
On  one  side  of  the  medal  was  the  device  of  an  officer  followed  by  two  soldiers ;  the  officer  pointing 
to  a  soldier  shooting  from  behind  a  tree,  and  an  Indian  prostrate  before  him.  In  the  background, 
Indian  houses  in  flames  are  seen.  The  legend  was,  "  Kittanning  destroyed  by  Colonel  Armstrong, 
September,  1756."  On  the  reverse  were  the  arms  of  the  corporation  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia, 
consisting  of  four  devices  :  on  the  right,  a  ship  under  full  sail ;  on  the  left,  a  pair  of  scales,  equally 
balanced ;  above  the  ship  a  wheat-sheaf,  and  over  the  scales  two  hands  clasped.  A  medal  was  also 
given  to  each  of  the  officers. 

When  the  War  for  Independence  broke  out,  Colonel  Armstrong  was  appointed  a  brigadier-gen 
eral  in  the  Pennsylvania  continental  line,  and  did  gallant  service  in  defence  of  Fort  Moultrie,  at 
Charleston,  in  the  summer  of  1776.  In  1777,  he  was  engaged  in  the  battles  of  Brandywine  and 
Germantown,  when,  becoming  dissatisfied  concerning  some  promotions  in  the  army,  he  resigned  his 
military  commission,  and  accepted  that  of  a  member  of  the  continental  Congress.  He  died  at  Car 
lisle,  Pennsylvania,  on  the  ninth  of  March,  1795. 


228  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

to  his  judicious  advice,  a  vast  amount  of  blood  and  treasure  might 
have  been  saved. 

At  the  North,  the  intercolonial  struggle  was  carried  on  with  con 
siderable  vigor  during  the  year  1756.  Until  the  spring  of  that 
year,  the  war  was  confined  to  America,  and  there  was  nominal 
amity  between  the  governments  of  France  and  England.  But 
when  intelligence  of  the  capture  of  the  Lys  and  Alcide  by  Admiral 
Boscawen  reached  France,  the  king  ordered  the  French  minister  in 
London  to  leave  England.  At  the  same  time,  the  British  govern 
ment  issued  letters  of  general  marque  and  reprisal.  And,  perceiv 
ing  no  prospect  of  a  peaceful  termination  of  difficulties,  the  English 
monarch,  on  the  seventeenth  of  May,  published  a  declaration  of  war 
against  the  king  of  France.*  The  gauntlet  was  taken  up  by  Louis 
on  the  ninth  of  June,  and  soon  the  fleets  and  armies  of  the  two 
nations  were  in  motion. 

At  this  time  the  Anglo-American  colonies  presented  a  curious 
political  spectacle.  They  were  separate  provinces,  having  individ 
ual  and  isolated  interests,  and  yet  there  was  a  strong  bond  of  union, 
wrought  by  common  commercial  and  other  interests  and  by  com 
mon  dangers,  which  was  strengthening  every  hour.  Left  to  their 
own  resources  in  the  pursuits  of  industry  and  of  practical  jurispru 
dence,  and  separated  from  the  old  dynasties  by  a  stormy  ocean  three 
thousand  miles  in  breadth,  democratic  ideas  had  taken  vigorous  root 
and  were  growing  apace  in  every  part  of  the  continent  where  Eng 
lish  settlements  existed,  unshadowed  by  feudal  institutions  and  un- 
trampled  by  military  despotism.  Sagacious  statesmen  in  the  mother- 
country,  proud  of  Britain's  power,  perceived  and  deprecated  this 
growth ;  and  loyal  minds,  who  regarded  the  integrity  of  the  British 
realm  with  reverence,  already  began  to  have  forebodings  of  future 
discontents  in  America,  and  predicted  the  final  independence  of  the 
colonies.  It  was  even  proposed  to  send  over  a  member  of  the  royal 

*  On  hearing  of  this  event,  Washington  inquired  of  the  governor  of  Virginia  —  "If  war  is  to  be 
declared  at  this  place  [his  headquarters  at  Winchester],  I  should  be  glad  if  your  honor  would  direct 
the  manner.  I  know  there  is  ceremony  required,  but  the  order  I  am  ignorant  of."  Dinwiddie  an 
swered  :  "  The  method,  by  which  you  are  to  declare  war,  is  at  the  head  of  your  companies,  with 
three  volleys  of  small-arms  for  his  majesty's  health  and  a  successful  war." 


JET.  24.]  ROYAL  AMERICAN  REGIMENT.  229 

house,  to  become  a  viceroy  or  an  absolute  sovereign  of  all  the 
English  colonies  in  America,  in  order  to  prevent  a  total  political 
dissolution. 

The  northern  expeditions  planned  by  the  council  of  governors  at 
New  York,  near  the  close  of  1755,  were  set  in  motion  as  early  as 
circumstances  would  allow.  To  excite  the  colonists  to  fresh  and 
stronger  efforts,  Parliament  voted  one  hundred  and  fifteen  thousand 
pounds  sterling  (over  half  a  million  of  dollars)  as  a  reimbursement 
to  the  provinces  whose  men  and  treasure  were  employed  in  the 
defeat  of  Dieskau.  Other  parliamentary  grants,  for  a  similar  pur 
pose,  were  promised,  and  the  king  was  authorized  to  cause  the 
enlistment  in  America  of  a  corps  composed  of  four  battalions  of  one 
thousand  men  each,  to  be  named  the  Royal  American  regiment. 
He  was  also  authorized  to  appoint  seventy  officers  in  this  regiment 
from  among  the  foreign  protestants  settled  and  naturalized  in 
America,  and  to  confer  power  upon  them  to  enlist  indented  servants 
by  paying  their  masters.*  These  latter  measures  produced  much 
dissatisfaction  in  the  colonies,  because  the  provincial  officers,  who 
were  generally  natives,  would  not  be  chosen,  and  because  equal 
enlistment  privileges  were  not  given  to  them.  Washington  urged 
Governor  Dinwiddie  to  authorize  such  enlistment  by  Virginia  offi 
cers.  u  If  we  had  this  privilege,"  he  said,  "  we  could  soon  complete 
the  regiment ;  and  I  doubt  not  but  his  majesty  would  order  them 
to  be  paid  for,  if  we  enlist  them,  as  soon  as  for  the  regulars ;  nay, 
should  he  not,  the  ten  pounds'  fine*]-  through  the  country  would  go 
a  considerable  way  towards  it.  And  this  we  may  depend  upon,  if 
we  have  not  this  liberty  granted  us,  the  servants  will  all  run  off  to 
the  regular  officers,  who  are  recruiting  around  us."  But  Dinwiddie 
refused  to  listen  to  these  suggestions,  being  more  desirous  of  pleas- 

*  These  servants  were  European  immigrants,  whose  services  were  purchased  for  a  term  of  years, 
from  themselves,  or  from  the  masters  of  vessels  who  brought  them  over,  and  to  whom  they  were 
indebted  for  their  passage-money.  If  they  were  above  nineteen  years  of  age,  they  could  be  required 
to  serve  only  five  years,  except  in  specified  cases ;  if  under  nineteen,  the  term  of  such  sendee  was 
limited  to  the  age  of  twenty-four  years.  They  were  exempt  from  military  duty  during  such  service, 
and  upon  no  account  could  they  be  sold  as  slaves.  —  See  Hening's  Statutes  of  Virginia,  vi.,  356. 

t  This  was  a  fine  imposed  upon  such  drafted  militia  as  refused  to  march.  It  was  so  low,  that 
many  of  the  drafts  preferred  to  pay  it,  and  stay  at  home.  —  Sparks's  Writings  of  Washington,  note, 
ii.,  169. 


230  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

ing  the  crown  than  of  benefiting  the  colony.  On  the  contrary,  he 
endeavored,  but  unsuccessfully,  to  prevail  on  the  assembly  to  draft 
militia  for  the  Koyal  regiment. 

Although  the  earl  of  Loudoun*  had  been  appointed  to  the  chief 
command  in  America  as  early  as  February,  some  hinderances  on 
the  part  of  the  government,  and  his  habits  of  procrastination,  pre 
vented  his  departure  until  May,  and  he  did  not  arrive  until  July. 
And  April  was  almost  gone  before  General  Abercrombie,  Loudoun's 
lieutenant,  who  had  been  ordered  forward  with  troops  to  take  tem 
porary  command,  sailed  from  England.  He  arrived  at  New  York 
in  June,  and  was  met  by  strong  recommendations  of  Colonel  Wash 
ington  as  worthy  of  promotion  in  the  British  establishment.  But 
jealousy  of  the  provincials  made  England  confide  more  in  foreign 
ers  than  in  Americans ;  and  the  merits  of  Colonel  Washington  found 
in  the  arrogant  officials  who  came  over  no  generous  appreciation 
and  response.  Their  faces  were  always  turned  toward  the  sun  of 
royalty,  in  whose  beams  they  basked,  and  autocracy  was  their  high 
est  ideal  of  power.  "  I  find,"  Abercrombie  said  to  Alexander  Colden, 
"  you  will  never  be  able  to  carry  on  anything  to  any  purpose  in 
America,  till  you  have  a  viceroy  or  superintendent  over  all  the 
provinces."  At  that  very  moment  the  young  Virginian  of  less  than 
four-and-twenty  summers,  whose  brilliant  achievements  in  the  midst 
of  obstacles  were  the  admiration  of  his  countrymen,  was  a  far  wiser 
and  more  skilful  military  commander  than  the  conceited  Scotchman 
of  middle  age  who  affected  a  contempt  for  all  provincial  officers — 
wiser  and  more  skilful,  indeed,  than  the  old  titled  commander-in- 
chief,  who  was  to  "  produce  a  great  change  in  affairs." 

*  John  Campbell,  fourth  earl  of  Loudoun,  was  one  of  the  sixteen  Scotch  peers,  and  was  born  in 
the  year  1705.  He  succeeded  to  the  title  of  his  father  in  1731,  and  in  1745  he  raised  a  regiment  of 
Highlanders  for  the  crown,  to  oppose  the  young  Pretender,  He  was  appointed  colonel  of  the  regi 
ment  in  April  of  that  year,  but  his  services  appear  to  have  been  of  little  use.  In  February,  1755, 
he  was  appointed  major-general,  and  in  December  following  he  received  the  commission  of  colonel 
of  the  Royal  American  regiment  of  four  thousand  men  to  be  raised  in  America.  His  career  during 
his  stay  in  the  colonies  was  marked  by  arrogance  and  inefficiency ;  and  yet,  lacking  as  he  was  in  mili 
tary  skill,  courage,  and  even  in  integrity  it  is  said,  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant-general 
in  1758.  It  was  fortunate  for  the  colonies  that  he  was  recalled  to  England.  A  few  years  later  he 
was  appointed  governor  of  Edinburgh  castle;  and  in  1770  he  became  colonel  of  a  regiment  of  foot 
guards,  and  a  general  in  the  army.  Lord  Loudoun  was  never  married.  He  died  at  Loudoun  castle, 
in  Ayrshire,  in  April,  1782,  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years. 


MT.  24.]  UNPROFITABLE  DISPUTES.  231 

Abercrombie,  like  his  superior,  moved  slowly.  He  loitered  in 
New  York  awhile,  and  toward  the  close  of  June  he  reached  Albany, 
where  Major-General  Winslow,  a  great-grandson  of  the  second  gov 
ernor  of  Plymouth,  who  had  been  appointed  to  command  the  expe 
dition  against  Crown  Point,  was  anxiously  awaiting  his  arrival,  with 
about  seven  thousand  provincial  troops.  This  number  was  inade 
quate  for  the  service,  and  he  hoped  that  the  reinforcement  of  the 
three  thousand  regulars  who  came  with  Abercrombie  would  ena 
ble  him  to  march  immediately  toward  Lake  Champlain.  A  road 
through  the  forests  had  been  cut  the  previous  year,  and  there 
seemed  nothing  to  prevent  a  successful  attack  upon  Crown  Point. 
But  Winslow  was  doomed  to  disappointment  and  mortification. 
The  haughty  Abercrombie,  who  outranked  and  superseded  Shirley, 
resolved  that  regular  officers  alone  should  command  the  provincials, 
and  that  the  English  troops  should  be  quartered  in  the  houses  of 
the  inhabitants.  These  measures  were  very  offensive  to  the  mili 
tary  and  the  people ;  and  Winslow  assured  Abercrombie  that  if  his 
resolution  respecting  rank  and  command  should  be  adhered  to,  he 
might  expect  very  extensive  desertions  from  the  army.  Abercrom 
bie  was  obstinate,  and  the  difficulties  growing  out  of  this  matter 
caused  much  delay.  These  had  just  been  compromised,  when  the 
earl  of  Loudoun  arrived  at  New  York,  with  a  commission  that  gave 
him  power  almost  equal  to  that  of  a  viceroy.  There  he  also  loi 
tered,  and  with  haughty  words  sought  to  awe  the  provincials  into 
submission  to  his  demands  concerning  rank.  He  soon  perceived 
that  he  was  dealing  with  men — men  of  thought  and  manly  inde 
pendence — and  not  with  mere  fighting-machines.  They  respect 
fully  but  firmly  informed  his  lordship  that  they  were  willing  to  act 
in  conjunction  with  the  royal  forces,  but  not  under  the  control  of 
the  subordinate  royal  officers,  and  entreated  him  to  allow  them  to 
act  separately,  so  far  as  might  be  consistent  with  the  interests  of  his 
majesty's  service.  This  was  finally  granted,  and  all  disputes  were 
satisfactorily  settled.* 

While  precious  time  was  thus  wasted  in  disputations  and  personal 

*  Graham's  Colonial  History  of  the  United  States,  ii.,  259. 


232  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

affairs,  the  public  service  had  greatly  suffered,  and  the  French,  prof 
iting  by  the  delay,  had  secured  vast  advantages.  They  had  been 
busy  in  making  preparations  for  a  desperate  struggle  for  supremacy, 
and,  while  the  English  were  literally  slumbering,  they  were  at  work. 
They  had  erected  a  chain  of  forts  in  the  West,  from  the  lakes  to 
the  Mexican  gulf;*  and  at  this  time  they  had  no  less  than  sixty 
stockades  and  other  smaller  fortifications  in  Canada,  the  most  of 
them  having  flourishing  settlements  around  them.  The  French  had 
been  busy,  too,  in  strengthening  their  bonds  of  alliance  with  various 
Indian  tribes,  and  in  weakening  the  faith  of  others,  who  seemed  to 
be  disposed  to  remain  neutral,  in  the  friendship  of  the  English. 

The  marquis  de  Montcalm,  a  descendant  of  a  noble  French  family, 
and  who  had  been  promoted  by  degrees  to  the  dignity  of  a  field- 
marshal,  had  succeeded  Dieskau  in  the  chief  command  of  the  French 
forces  in  Canada.  He  was  small  in  stature,  but  had  a  deservedly 
high  reputation  for  vigor  and  military  ability ;  and  his  movements, 
like  his  conversation,  were  rapid  and  nervous. 

Before  Montcalm's  arrival  at  Quebec,  small  parties  of -French 
troops  at  Montreal  had  penetrated  the  country  south  and  east  ot 
Lake  Ontario,  and  hovered  around  the  passes  of  the  Onondaga  river 
to  intercept  supplies  for  the  English  garrison  at  Oswego.  In  spite 
of  these,  the  brave  and  energetic  Bradstreet,  of  New  York,  who  had 
been  appointed  commissary  general,  had  thrown  into  the  fort  there 
sufficient  provisions  for  five  thousand  men  for  six  months,  and  a 
great  quantity  of  military  stores.  In  these  perilous  labors  he  was 
accompanied  by  Philip  Schuyler,  the  great  patriot  of  the  Revolution, 
who  then  took  his  earliest  practical  lessons  in  the  art  of  war.  This 
service  was  all  accomplished  early  in  July,  and  Shirley  urged  Aber- 
crombie  to  send  forward  two  battalions  for  the  protection  of  Oswego. 
But  that  tardy  and  overbearing  general  was  thinking  more  of  his 

*  According  to  Governor  Pownall,  who  drew  his  facts  from  letters  of  Governor  Vaudreuil,  the 
French  employed  about  two  thousand  soldiers  in  the  western  forts  and  settlements.  At  New  Or 
leans,  there  were  three  hundred  French  and  seventy-five  Swiss  soldiers.  At  Mobile,  the  French 
and  Swiss  numbered  four  hundred  and  seventy-five.  In  the  Illinois  country,  there  were  three  hun 
dred  ;  in  Arkansas,  fifty;  in  Natchez,  fifty;  in  Natchitoches,  fifty;  at  Point  Coupe,  fifty;  and  in  a 
German  settlement,  fifty.  These  had  great  influence  over  the  western  tribes  ;  and  Vaudreuil  says 
that  at  annual  meetings  or  treaties,  three  thousand  Indians  would  sometimes  be  present. 


Mr.  24.]  THE  ENGLISH  AT  OSWEGO.  233 

own  authority  than  the  security  of  important  posts ;  and  he  actu 
ally  ordered  a  survey  of  Albany,  that  it  might  be  ditched  and  stock 
aded,  while  the  necessities  of  the  frontier  were  urging  him  thither. 

Thus  left  exposed,  Oswego  became  an  object  of  prey  for  the  ac 
tive  and  far-sighted  Montcalm.  While  the  English  army,  ten  thou 
sand  strong,  lay  idle  at  Albany,  suffering  from  small-pox  and  want 
of  provisions,  that  active  officer  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence  from 
Montreal,  with  five  thousand  regulars,  Canadians,  and  Indians ;  and, 
crossing  Lake  Ontario  from  Frontenac  (now  Kingston),  he  landed 
stealthily  behind  a  wooded  cape  a  few  miles  below  Oswego. 

As  early  as  1727,  Governor  Burnet  had  built  and  armed  at  his 
own  expense  a  small  fort  at  Oswego,  and  then,  for  the  first  time,  the 
British  flag  was  seen  upon  the  shores  of  Lake  Ontario.  The  French 
and  the  Six  Nations  demurred,  but  the  English  flag  was  never  struck 
from  that  time  until  1756,  and  had  floated  over  a  competent  garri 
son  and  well-armed  fortress  during  that  whole  period.  In  the  mean 
while,  the  French  had  built  Fort  Niagara,  and  also  Fort  Frederick 
on  Lake  Champlain.  In  1755,  Governor  Shirley  strengthened  the 
post  at  Oswego.  The  old  fort  was  a  strong  stone  building,  on  the 
west  side  of  the  harbor,  surrounded  by  a  heavy  wall,  and  flanked 
by  four  bastions.  Shirley  erected  another  of  huge  logs  on  the  high 
eastern  bank  of  the  harbor,  made  a  wide  and  deep  ditch  and  heavy 
wall  around  it,  and  called  it  Fort  Ontario.  This  new  fortification 
had  barracks  for  three  hundred  men,  and  full  that  number  were 
now  in  garrison  there. 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Mercer  was  the  commander  at  Oswego.  When 
he  discovered  Montcalm,  he  sent  out  a  brigantine  and  other  armed 
vessels  to  keep  the  French  from  approaching  Oswego  by  water. 
The  brigantine  was  driven  ashore  in  a  gale,  and  the  heavy  guns  of 
the  invaders  compelled  the  other  vessels  to  retire.  In  the  mean 
while,  the  French  besieging  cannons  were  transported  to  within  a 
short  distance  of  Fort  Ontario,  and  Montcalm's  motley  army  pressed 
steadily  through  the  woods  to  invest  that  post.  At  midnight,  on  the 
twelfth  of  August,  trenches  were  opened  under  cover  of  thirty-two 
pieces  of  cannon  and  several  mortars  and  howitzers,  and  at  dawn 


234  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

the  garrison  commenced  a  fire  upon  the  besiegers.  All  day  the 
contest  raged,  and  ceased  not  until  eleven  o'clock  at  night,  when 
the  scanty  ammunition  of  the  garrison  was  exhausted.  Perceiving 
no  possibility  of  longer  defending  the  post,  they  spiked  the  guns, 
and  fled  across  the  river  at  midnight  to  the  old  fort,  without  losing 
a  man. 

Montcalm  took  possession  of  Fort  Ontario  on  the  morning  of  the 
fourteenth,  and  opened  a  heavy  cannonade  upon  the  doomed  for 
tress  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  harbor.  In  the  meantime,  twenty- 
five  hundred  Canadians  and  Indians  had  crossed  the  Oswego  river 
by  swimming,  and  cut  off  all  communication  between  its  mouth  and 
Fort  George,  a  small  stockade  four  miles  above,  commanded  by 
Colonel  Schuyler.  The  English  at  Oswego  could  now  make  but 
little  resistance.  At  eight  o'clock  a  round  shot  killed  Colonel  Mer 
cer,  and  at  ten  a  white  flag,  in  token  of  submission,  was  hoisted  upon 
the  walls  of  Fort  Oswego,  and  the  drums  of  the  garrison  beat  a 
chamade,  or  parley.*  A  capitulation  was  soon  agreed  upon.  The 
terms  were  honorable  to  both  parties.  The  English  were  to  be 
exempted  from  plunder,  treated  with  humanity,  and  conducted  in 
safety  to  Montreal.  "  They  shall  be  shown  all  the  regard  the  po 
litest  nation  can  show,"  said  Montcalm;  and  he  added — "The  Eng 
lish  are  an  enemy  to  be  esteemed,  and  none  but  a  brave  nation 
would  have  thought  of  defending  so  weak  a  place  so  long."f  About 
sixteen  hundred  brave  Englishmen,  of  the  regiments  of  Shirley  and 
Pepperell,  became  prisoners-of-war ;  and  a  large  quantity  of  arms, 
ammunition,  and  stores,  with  vessels  in  the  harbor,  passed  into  the 
hands  of  the  French. 

Montcalm  immediately  demolished  the  forts  at  Oswego.  For 
thirty  years  the  English  flag,  floating  over  an  armed  trading-station, 
had  been  an  object  of  uneasiness  to  the  Six  Nations.  Montcalm 
knew  this,  and,  with  the  policy  of  a  sagacious  mind,  he  swept  every 
vestige  of  English  power  from  the  country  of  the  Iroquois  con- 

*  Montcalm's  despatch. 

t  Graham  says  that  Montcalm  was  faithless  ;  that  he  "instantly  delivered  up  twenty  of  his  pris 
oners  to  the  Indians  who  accompanied  him,  as  victims  to  their  vengeance  for  an  equal  number  of 
their  own  race  who  had  perished  in  the  siege."  He  adds  that  almost  all  of  the  prisoners  were  plun 
dered,  many  were  scalped,  and  some  murdered.  —  Colonial  History  of  the  United  States,  ii.,  259. 


ZEr.  24.]  FAILURES  OF  THE  ENGLISH.  235 

federacy.  With  his  prisoners  and  followers  he  went  down  Ontario 
and  the  St.  Lawrence,  leaving  the  Indians  in  full  possession  of  their 
domain.  This  act  caused  the  Six  Nations  to  become  neutral ;  and 
ere  long  four  members  of  the  confederacy — the  Oneidas,  Ononda- 
gas,  Cayugas,  and  Senecas — were  wholly  seduced  from  the  British 
interest  by  French  emissaries. 

The  capture  and  destruction  of  Oswego  alarmed  the  English  com 
mander,  and  all  aggressive  movements  were  suspended.  The  plans 
of  Lord  Loudoun,  if  he  had  any  definite  ones,  were  all  thrown  into 
confusion ;  and,  after  a  season  of  indolence  and  indecision,  he  or 
dered  an  abandonment  of  the  proposed  expedition  against  Crown 
Point.  Finally,  the  provincials  were  disbanded  and  sent  home,  the 
regulars  were  placed  in  winter  quarters,  and  the  French  were 
allowed  to  proceed  in  the  erection  of  Fort  Ticonderoga,  on  Lake 
Champlain,  without  molestation.  Small  garrisons  were  placed  in 
Forts  Edward  and  William  Henry,  and  a  thousand  regulars  were 
marched  to  New  York  and  quartered  gratuitously  upon  the  inhabit 
ants.  The  projected  expedition  up  the  Kennebec  terminated  in  a 
mere  exploration  of  the  country  by  a  harmless  scout ;  the  enter 
prise  against  Fort  Duquesne,  as  we  have  seen,  was  not  carried  into 
effect ;  and  the  inefficiency  of  British  commanders,  reflecting  the 
imbecility  of  the  imperial  government  at  that  time,  interfered  with 
the  wiser  counsels  and  zealous  aspirations  of  the  provincials,  defeated 
every  cherished  purpose  of  the  campaign,  and  brought  disgrace 
upon  the  English  name. 


236  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  L1757. 


CHAPTER  XXIY. 

WASHINGTON  MISREPRESENTED  —  DINWIDDIE's  FEARS  —  WASHINGTON'S  LETTER 
TO  LORD  LOUDOUN HE  ATTENDS  THE  COUNCIL  AT  PHILADELPHIA HIS  DIS 
APPOINTMENT CHARACTER  OF  LORD  LOUDOUN WASHINGTON  RETURNS  TO 

WINCHESTER HIS    DISGUST   WITH   THE    SERVICE IS    PLACED    UNDER   THE 

COMMAND  OF  COLONEL  STANWIX  —  STILL  ANNOYED  BY  THE  GOVERNOR DIN- 

WIDDIE'S  DISCOURTESY  AND  WASHINGTON'S  DIGNITY — A  SLANDER  REPELLED  — 
THE  REGIMENT  WEAKENED DISTRESS  OF  THE  INHABITANTS WASHINGTON'S 

FAILING    HEALTH HE    RETIRES    TO    MOUNT    VERNON LONG    SICKNESS DE 
PARTURE    OF    DINWIDDIE. 

WE  have  already  noticed  the  order  of  Loudoun  respecting  Fort 
Cumberland,  which  contained  an  implied  censure  of  Washington. 
That  young  commander  felt  it  keenly,  and  was  satisfied  that  mis 
representations  had  been  made  to  his  lordship.  Late  in  December, 
he  wrote  to  Dinwiddie :  "  I  have  read  that  paragraph  in  Lord  Lou- 
doun's  letter,  which  you  were  pleased  to  send  me,  over  and  over 

again,  but  am  unable  to  comprehend  its  meaning I  see  with 

much  regret,  that  he  seems  to  have  prejudged  my  proceedings, 
without  being  thoroughly  informed  of  the  springs  and  motives  that 
actuated  my  conduct.  How  far  I  have  mistaken  the  means  to  rec 
ommend  my  services,  I  know  not ;  but  I  am  certain  of  this,  that  no 
man  ever  intended  better,  or  studied  the  interests  of  my  country 
with  more  zeal,  than  I  have  done ;  and  nothing  gives  me  greater 
uneasiness  and  concern  than  that  his  lordship  should  have  imbibed 
prejudices  so  unfavorable  to  my  character,  as  to  excite  his  belief 
that  I  was  capable  of  doing  anything  '  that  will  have  a  bad  effect  as 
to  the  Dominion,*  and  no  good  appearance  at  home.' "  In  this  letter, 

*  "  The  Dominion"  was  a  term  frequently  applied  to  Virginia  in  colonial  times,  and  we  now 
hear  it  called  "  The  Old  Dominion."  This  term  originated  in  the  fact  that  Governor  Berkeley,  in 
1660,  on  hearing  of  the  probable  restoration  of  Charles  the  Second  to  the  throne  of  his  father,  pro 
claimed  him  king  of  England,  Scotland,  France,  Ireland,  and  Virginia.  Charles  was  therefore 
made  king,  in  Virginia,  by  the  supreme  authorities  of  the  colony,  before  he  actually  became  so  in 


JEr.  25.]  LETTER  TO  LORD  LOUDOUN  237 

"Washington  expressed  a  desire  to  see  Lord  Loudoun  as  early  as 
possible,  and  repeated  his  request  for  permission  to  meet  his  lord 
ship  at  Alexandria,  on  the  occasion  of  his  expected  visit  to  Yirginia. 
To  this  the  governor  was  averse,  for  he  evidently  felt  a  conscious 
ness  of  guilt,  and  a  fear  that  his  own  hand  would  be  chiefly  and  pal 
pably  seen  in  the  work  of  misrepresentation.  For  this  reason  he 
sought  to  apply  a  palliative  to  soothe  the  feelings  of  the  injured 
young  soldier.  "  The  paragraph  of  Lord  Loudoun's  letter,"  he  wrote 
to  Washington,  "  was  entirely  confined  to  Fort  Cumberland ;  he  was 
afraid  you  would  have  evacuated  and  dismantled  that  fort  before 
his  letter  reached  me ;  nor  can  you  think  that  he  either  prejudges 
or  has  a  bad  opinion  of  your  conduct." 

This  half-apologetic  and  suspicious  answer  did  not  satisfy  Wash 
ington,  and  he  determined  to  seek  an  opportunity  of  placing  every 
thing  pertaining  to  his  command  in  a  proper  light  before  the  earl. 
Having  been  informed  that  his  lordship  had  appointed  a  meeting 
with  several  of  the  southern  governors,  to  be  held  at  Philadelphia 
in  March,  1757,  to  consult  about  measures  for  the  defence  of  their 
respective  provinces,  he  asked  permission  of  Governor  Dinwiddie  to 
attend  it.  Leave  was  ungraciously  given.  "  I  can  not  perceive," 
wrote  the  governor  in  reply,  "  what  service  you  can  be  of,  in  going 
there ;  as  the  plan  concerted  will,  in  course,  be  communicated  to 
you  and  the  other  officers.  However,  as  you  seem  so  earnest  to 
go,  I  now  give  you  leave."  This  reply  confirmed  the  suspicions  of 
Washington  and  his  friends  that  Dinwiddie  had  made  false  repre 
sentations  to  the  earl,  and  was  desirous  that  they  should  not  meet. 

In  February,  about  a  month  before  the  appointed  meeting,  Wash 
ington  addressed  to  Lord  Loudoun  a  long  and  able  letter,  occupying 
some  fifteen  pages  of  manuscript,  in  which  he  gave  a  brief  history 
of  military  events  in  Virginia,  and  of  the  part  he  had  acted  in  them. 

England.  When  the  Virginians  were  informed  that  Parliament  was  about  to  send  a  fleet  to  reduce 
them  to  submission,  they  despatched  a  messenger  in  a  small  ship  to  Charles,  then  at  Breda,  in  Flan 
ders,  to  invite  him  to  come  over  and  be  king  of  Virginia.  He  was  on  the  point  of  sailing,  when  he 
was  called  to  the  throne  of  England.  In  gratitude  to  Virginia,  he  caused  the  arms  of  that  province 
to  be  quartered  with  those  of  England,  Scotland,  and  Ireland,  as  an  independent  member  of  the 
empire.  From  this  circumstance,  Virginia  received  the  name  of  "  The  Dominion."  Coins  with 
these  quarterings  were  made  as  late  as  1773. 


238  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1757. 

This  letter  was  a  lucid  exposition  of  affairs ;  concise  yet  perspicuous, 
modest  yet  dignified.  After  giving  a  narrative  of  events,  he  pro 
ceeded  to  point  out  the  serious  defects  of  the  militia  system,  the 
confusion  which  its  practical  operations  engendered,  and  the  total 
inadequacy  of  the  policy  pursued  by  the  Virginia  government  to 
restore  peace  and  security  to  the  frontiers.  He  then  spoke  mod 
estly  of  himself,  his  services  and  his  grievances.  He  mentioned  the 
ambiguity  of  the  governor's  orders,  and  the  uncertainty  in  which 
he  was  frequently  left,  concerning  very  important  matters,  while  he 
was  held  responsible  for  "consequences,  and  blamed  without  the 
privilege  of  defence." — "This,  my  lord,"  he  said,  "I  beg  leave  to 
declare,  is  at  present  my  situation.  Therefore  it  is  not  to  be  won 
dered  at,  if,  under  such  peculiar  circumstances,  I  should  be  sick  of 
a  service  which  promises  so  little  of  a  soldier's  reward.  I  have  long 
been  satisfied  of  the  impossibility  of  remaining  in  this  service,  with 
out  loss  of  honor.  Indeed,  I  was  fully  convinced  of  it  before  I  ac 
cepted  the  command  a  second  time,  seeing  the  cloudy  prospect 
before  me ;  and  I  did,  for  this  reason,  reject  the  offer,  until  I  was 
ashamed  any  longer  to  refuse,  not  caring  to  expose  my  character 
to  public  censure.  The  solicitations  of  the  country*  overcame  my 
objections,  and  induced  me  to  accept  it." 

"  Another  reason,"  continued  Washington,  "  has  of  late  operated 
to  continue  me  in  the  service  until  now,  and  that  is,  the  dawn  of 
hope  that  arose,  when  I  heard  your  lordship  was  destined  by  his 
majesty  for  the  important  command  of  his  armies  in  America,  and 
appointed  to  the  government  of  his  dominion  of  Virginia.  Hence 
it  was,  that  I  drew  my  hopes,  and  fondly  pronounced  your  lordship 
our  patron."  After  mentioning  the  delay  of  the  Virginia  authori 
ties  in  making  a  promised  and  much-needed  reorganization  of  the 
military  establishment,  and  the  assurances  of  preferment  made  to 
him  by  General  Braddock,  Washington  continued  :  "  I  do  not  know, 
my  lord,  in  what  light  this  short  and  disinterested  relation  may  be 
received ;  but  it  is  offered  with  the  utmost  candor  and  submission. 

*  In  this  connection,  as  in  several  other  letters  of  Washington  from  which  we  have  quoted,  the 
word  "  country"  signifies  the  members  of  the  Virginia  assembly. 


jET.  25.]  WASHINGTON'S  DISAPPOINTMENT.  239 

It  contains  no  misrepresentations,  nor  aggravated  statements  of 
facts,  nor  unjust  reflections.  Virginia  is  a  country  young  in  war, 
and,  until  the  breaking  out  of  these  disturbances,  has  remained  in 
the  most  profound  and  tranquil  peace,  never  studying  war  nor  war 
fare.  It  is  not  therefore  to  be  imagined,  that  she  can  fall  into  the 
proper  measures  at  once.  All  that  can  be  expected  at  her  hands, 
she  cheerfully  offers — the  sinews  of  war  —  and  these  only  want  your 
lordship's  ability  and  experience  to  be  properly  applied  and  directed." 

This  able  letter,  which  exhibited  the  developing  germs  of  a  saga 
cious  statesman  and  skilful  soldier,  was  an  influential  herald  of  the 
young  commander's  appearance  before  the  earl  of  Loudoun.  It 
reached  the  earl,  at  New  York,  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  February, 
and  his  secretary,  in  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  it,  wrote — "His 
lordship  seems  very  much  pleased  with  the  accounts  you  have  given 
him  of  the  situation  of  affairs  to  the  southward."  Washington  was 
present  at  the  council  held  in  Philadelphia  a  little  later,  when  he 
was  very  graciously  received  by  Lord  Loudoun.  The  southern  gov 
ernors,  too,  who  were  present,  and  who  were  familiar  with  his  char 
acter  and  services,  treated  him  with  marked  respect;  and  Dr. 
Franklin  and  his  friends  cordially  welcomed  the  noble  young  Vir 
ginian  among  them. 

Lord  Loudoun  consulted  "Washington  concerning  the  future  dis 
position  of  the  forces  on  the  frontiers  of  the  southern  colonies,  and 
seemed  to  attach  more  weight  to  his  opinions  on  military  affairs 
than  to  those  of  any  one  present.  Yet  his  wishes  for  the  equitable 
organization  of  his  regiment,  so  as  to  have  it  on  the  same  footing 
as  the  regular  army,  and  the  desire  to  have  his  own  and  his  officers' 
commissions  given  by  the  king,  were  not  gratified.  Nor  were  his 
cherished  plans  and  earnest  recommendations  for  an  invasion  of  the 
enemy's  country,  especially  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Duquesne,  con 
sidered  favorably.  But  his  views  in  regard  to  Fort  Cumberland  — 
that  bone  of  contention  between  himself  and  the  governor — were 
adopted ;  and  it  was  agreed  that  that  post  should  be  garrisoned  by 
Maryland  forces,  and  that  the  Virginia  troops,  provisions,  and  stores, 
should  be  removed  to  Fort  Loudoun. 


240  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1757. 

Washington  experienced  great  disappointment  in  his  personal 
interview  with  Lord  Loudoun,  and  he  went  back  to  Virginia  with  a 
heavy  heart.  At  the  close  of  that  interview,  instead  of  regarding 
his  lordship  as  the  destined  savior  of  the  colonies,  he  was  constrained 
to  feel  that  their  cause,  in  such  keeping,  was  a  hopeless  one.  In 
this  feeling  the  best  men  in  America  sympathized  with  him.  Al 
ready  Loudoun's  conduct  at  New  York,  and  in  the  council  composed 
of  the  governors  of  Nova  Scotia  and  the  New  England  provinces, 
which  was  held  at  Boston  in  January,  had  provoked  the  contempt, 
jealousy,  and  disgust,  of  the  colonists.  He  was  imperious  arid  un 
dignified;  always  hurried  and  hurrying  others,  yet  making  little 
progress  in  the  despatch  of  business ;  quick,  and  forward  to  project 
and  threaten,  but  infirm,  remiss,  and  mutable,  in  pursuit  and  execu 
tion  ;  impotent  against  the  enemy  he  was  sent  to  vanquish,  and  for 
midable  only  to  the  spirit  of  liberty  which  pervaded  the  colonies, 
and  which  he  could  not  appreciate.*  "  He  is  like  St.  George  upon 
a  sign-post,"  said  a  gentleman  to  Franklin — "always  on  horseback, 
but  never  advancing."  Afterward,  in  referring  to  Loudoun  and  his 
operations,  Franklin  said :  "  On  the  whole,  I  wondered  much  how 
such  a  man  came  to  be  intrusted  with  so  important  a  business  as 
the  conduct  of  a  great  army ;  but  having  since  seen  more  of  the 
great  world,  and  the  means  of  obtaining  and  motives  for  giving 
places  and  employments,  my  wonder  is  diminished."-)- 

Washington  returned  to  Winchester,  from  the  conference  at  Phil 
adelphia,  and  resumed  his  duties,  but  not  without  feelings  of  regret 
that  such  unwise  counsels  controlled  the  affairs  of  his  country.  Con 
fined  to  comparatively  inactive  service  without  respite,  to  the  seri 
ous  injury  of  his  private  affairs,  his  situation  became  irksome  in  the 
extreme.  In  a  letter  to  his  kinsman  and  correspondent  in  London, 
written  in  April,  1757,  giving  him  reasons  for  long  silence,  Wash 
ington  wrote :  "  I  have  been  posted,  then,  for  twenty  months  past, 
upon  our  cold  and  barren  frontiers,  to  perform,  I  think  I  may  say, 
impossibilities;  that  is,  to  protect  from  the  cruel  incursions  of  a 

*  Graham's  Colonial  History  of  the  United  States,  ii.,  262. 
t  Memoirs  of  Benjamin  Franklin,  written  by  Himself. 


COLONEL  STANWIX.  24] 

crafty,  savage  enemy,  a  line  of  inhabitants  more  than  three  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  in  extent,  with  a  force  inadequate  to  the  task.  By 
this  means  I  am  become,  in  a  manner,  an  exile." 

Although  tired  and  often  disgusted  with  the  service,  Colonel 
Washington's  love  of  country  and  estimate  of  true  honor  outweighed 
all  personal  considerations,  and  he  remained  at  his  post  of  duty, 
faithful  and  vigilant,  until  near  the  close  of  the  year.  During  all 
that  time,  he  was  continually  harassed  and  perplexed.  Kefused  a 
position  in  the  regular  army,  he  was  nevertheless  placed,  in  a  meas 
ure,  under  the  commands  of  Colonel  Stanwix,  who  wTas  stationed  in 
the  interior  of  Pennsylvania  with  five  companies  of  the  Royal  Amer 
ican  regiment,  to  defend  the  frontiers  of  that  colony.  But  so  am 
biguous  were  the  instructions  of  Dinwiddie  concerning  this  relation 
ship  to  the  regular  service,  that  Washington  was  at  a  loss  to  know 
to  what  extent  he  must  obey  Stanwix  rather  than  the  governor  of 
Virginia,  when  their  orders  should  conflict  Finally,  in  reply  to 
the  urgent  request  of  Washington  that  he  should  be  explicit,  Din 
widdie  wrote,  in  June  :  "  Colonel  Stanwix  being  appointed  com- 
mander-in-chief  of  the  middle  and  southern  provinces,  you  must 
submit  to  his  orders  without  regard  to  any  you  may  receive  from 
me  ;  he  being  nearer  the  place  [Fort  Cumberland],  can  direct  affairs 
better  than  I  can."  This  letter  gave  Washington  great  pleasure. 
He  knew  Colonel  Stanwix  to  be  a  gentleman  of  culture,  urbanity, 
generosity,  and  delicacy  of  feeling ;  above  all,  he  was  an  educated 
military  man,  and  could  understand  the  needs  and  difficulties  of 
the  service  in  which  the  young  Virginian  was  engaged. 

Washington  now  fondly  hoped  to  be  rid  of  the  vexatious  inter 
ference  of  the  weak  Dinwiddie.  But  this  hope  proved  fallacious. 
That  functionary  seemed  to  take  special  delight  in  annoying  Colo 
nel  Washington.  Notwithstanding  his  explicit  order  just  quoted, 
he  continued  to  harass  him  with  despatches  which  conveyed  com 
mands,  required  returns,  or  uttered  complaints,  until  the  patience 
of  Washington  was  well-nigh  exhausted.  Unmanly  peevishness  and 
ungenerous  censoriousness  characterized  many  of  his  despatches. 
At  one  time  he  complained  that  Washington  wrote  to  him  "  in  a 

16 

I 


24i>  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1757. 

loose  manner ;"  at  another,  the  explicit  and  earnest  recommenda 
tions  of  the  young  soldier  were  considered  impertinent ;  and  when 
Washington  asked  permission,  after  long  and  laborious  service,  to 
visit  Mount  Vernon,  for  the  purpose  of  attending  to  some  private 
affairs,  the  reasonable  request  was  peremptorily  denied  with  words 
of  discourtesy  that  no  true  gentleman  would  use.  And  finally,  in 
the  autumn,  when  Dinwiddie  was  making  preparations  to  leave  the 
province,  and  Washington  wrote  —  "I  should  be  glad  of  liberty  to 
go  down  to  Williamsburg  toward  the  last  of  this  month  [October], 
or  first  of  the  next,  if  nothing  should  intervene,  to  settle  some  ac 
counts  with  you  and  the  committee,  which  may  not  be  done  in  so 
satisfactory  a  manner  after  you  are  gone"  —  the  unmannerly  gov 
ernor  replied :  "  I  can  not  agree  to  allow  you  to  come  down  at  this 
time.  You  have  been  frequently  indulged  with  leave  of  absence. 
You  know  the  fort  is  to  be  finished,  and  I  fear  when  you  are  away 
little  will  be  done ;  and  surely  the  commanding  officer  should  not 
be  absent  when  daily  alarmed  with  the  enemy's  intentions  to  invade 
our  frontiers,  and  I  think  you  were  wrong  in  asking  it.  You  have 
no  accounts  that  I  know  of  to  settle  with  me ;  and  what  accounts 
you  may  have  to  settle  with  the  country  may  be  done  at  a  more 
proper  time." 

And  yet,  after  having,  from  the  hour  of  Washington's  appoint 
ment  as  commander-in-chief  of  the  Virginia  forces,  exhibited  an 
unfriendly  spirit  towards  him ;  had  sought  to  disparage  him  and 
drive  him  into  private  life,  and  had  harassed  him  with  almost  un 
ceasing  annoyances  in  the  prosecution  of  his  military  duties,  Din 
widdie  had  the  effrontery  to  write  :  "  My  conduct  to  you  from  the 
beginning  was  always  friendly ;  but  you  knew  I  had  great  reason 
to  suspect  you  of  ingratitude,  which  I  am  convinced  your  own  con 
science  and  reflection  must  allow."  To  this  insinuation,  Washington 
replied :  "  I  do  not  know,  that  I  ever  gave  your  honor  cause  to  sus 
pect  me  of  ingratitude,  a  crime  I  detest,  and  would  most  carefully 
avoid.  If  an  open,  disinterested  behavior  causes  offence,  I  may 
have  offended ;  because  I  have  all  along  laid  it  down  as  a  maxim, 
to  represent  facts  freely  and  impartially,  but  not  more  so  to  others, 


far.  26.]  A  SLANDERER  REBUKED.  243 

sir,  than  to  you.  If  instances  of  my  ungrateful  behavior  had  been 
particularized,  I  would  have  answered  them.  But  I  have  long  been 
convinced,  that  my  actions  and  their  motives  have  been  maliciously 

misrepresented To  give  a  more  succinct  account  of  affairs,"  he 

said,  "  than  I  could  in  writing,  was  the  principal,  among  many  other 
reasons,  that  induced  me  to  ask  leave  to  come  down.  It  was  not 
to  enjoy  a  party  of  pleasure,  that  I  asked  leave  of  absence.  I  have 
indulged  with  few  of  those,  winter  or  summer."  It  was  in  dignified 
language  like  this  that  Washington  always  replied,  even  to  the  most 
vexatious  letters  of  the  governor. 

A  little  earlier  than  this,  Washington  received  a  letter  informing 
him  that  a  slanderer  had  been  at  the  ear  of  the  governor,  and  had 
made  coarse  and  severe  reflections  upon  his  veracity  and  honor. 
That  accuser  had  asserted  that  Washington  had  sent  to  Williams- 
burg  false  reports  respecting  the  alarm  of  the  people,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  causing  the  assembly  to  make  large  levies  in  men  and 
money.  These  slanders,  the  writer  alleged,  were  believed ;  and  he 
asserted  that  Speaker  Robinson  had  declared  that  "that  piece  of 
deceit,  or  imposition,  had  lessened  the  governor's  and  some  of  the 
leading  men's  esteem  for  him." 

Washington  immediately  enclosed  a  copy  of  the  letter  to  Dinwid- 
die,  and  said :  "  I  should  take  it  infinitely  kind,  if  your  honor  would 
please  to  inform  me,  whether  a  report  of  this  nature  was  ever  made 
to  you ;  and  in  that  case,  who  was  the  author  of  it.  It  is  evident, 
from  a  variety  of  circumstances,  and  especially  from  the  change  in 
your  honor's  conduct  towards  me,  that  some  person,  as  well  inclined 
to  detract,  but  better  skilled  in  the  art  of  detraction,  than  the  au 
thor  of  the  above  stupid  scandal,  has  made  free  with  my  character. 
For  I  can  not  suppose,  that  malice  so  absurd,  so  barefaced,  so  dia 
metrically  opposite  to  truth,  to  common  policy,  and,  in  short,  to 
everything  but  villany,  as  the  above  is,  could  impress  you  with  so 
ill  an  opinion  of  my  honor  and  honesty."  To  this  letter  the  gov 
ernor  replied :  "  I  never  heard  of  it  [the  slander]  before,  nor  did  I 
ever  conceive  that  you  would  ever  have  sent  down  any  alarm  with 
out  proper  foundation."  Under  other  circumstances,  this  disclaimer 


244  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1757. 

would  have  been  sufficient ;  but  Washington  and  his  friends  had 
just  reason  to  believe  that  the  governor  was  utterly  insincere. 

In  addition  to  these  vexations,  Colonel  Washington  was  made  to 
feel  keenly  his  impotence  as  the  defender  of  his  country,  because  of 
a  lack  of  means.  Instead  of  having  been  strengthened,  as  the  dan 
ger  appeared  more  formidable,  he  had  been  weakened.  The  con 
vention  at  Philadelphia  decided  to  draw  four  hundred  men  from 
Washington's  regiment  for  the  protection  of  the  frontiers  of  the 
more  southern  colonies,  then  menaced  by  a  cloud  of  excited  sav 
ages  among  whom  French  emissaries  had  been  for  some  time  work 
ing  with  success.  And  this  weakening  of  his  regiment  was  done  at 
a  time  when  the  French  and  Indians  in  the  Ohio  region  were  again 
in  motion,  and  threatening  the  inhabitants  wTest  of  the  Blue  Eidge 
with  a  repetition  of  former  horrors.  During  the  latter  part  of  the 
summer,  and  until  late  in  autumn,  the  settlements  along  the  Vir 
ginia  frontiers  were  continually  excited  by  a  sense  of  impending 
danger. 

At  that  time,  Washington  with  his  reduced  regiment  could  have 
easily  captured  Fort  Duquesne,  and  established  peace  and  security 
on  the  western  borders  of  his  province,  for  the  garrison  had  been 
weakened  by  large  drafts  for  the  defence  of  the  Canadian  frontier, 
and  many  of  the  Indians  wTere  upon  the  war-path  in  the  North. 
But  Washington's  urgent  advice  in  the  matter  was  unheeded ;  and 
the  savages,  emboldened  by  the  inactivity  in  Virginia  and  Pennsyl 
vania,  were  continually  breaking  into  and  plundering  the  more 
remote  settlements.  The  provisions  for  defensive  measures  were 
inadequate.  "  I  do  not  know,"  Washington  wrote  to  Speaker  Rob 
inson,  in  October,  "  on  whom  these  miserable,  undone  people,  are  to 
rely  for  protection.  If  the  assembly  are  to  give  it  to  them,  it  is 
time  that  measures  were  at  least  concerting,  and  not  when  they 
ought  to  be  going  into  execution,  as  has  always  been  the  case.  If 
they  are  to  seek  it  from  the  commander-in-chief,  it  is  time  their 
condition  was  made  known  to  him ;  for  I  can  not  forbear  repeating 
again,  that  while  we  pursue  defensive  measures  we  pursue  inevita 
ble  ruin,  the  loss  of  the  country  being  the  inevitable  and  fatal  con- 


Mr.  05.]  WASHINGTON'S  ILLNESS.  245 

sequence.  There  will  be  no  end  to  our  troubles,  while  we  follow 
this  plan,  and  every  year  will  increase  our  expense.  This,  my  dear 
sir,  I  urge  not  only  as  an  officer,  but  as  a  friend,  who  has  property 
in  the  country,  and  is  unwilling  to  lose  it.  This  it  is,  also,  that 
makes  me  anxious  for  doing  more  than  barely  to  represent  these 
matters,  which  is  all  that  is  expected  of  an  officer  commanding." 
To  Colonel  Stanwix  he  wrote :  "  I  exert  every  means  in  my  power 
to  protect  a  much-distressed  country,  but  it  is  a  task  too  ardu 
ous.  To  think  of  defending  a  frontier  of  more  than  three  hun 
dred  and  fifty  miles'  extent,  with  only  seven  hundred  men,  is  vain 
and  idle,  especially  when  that  frontier  lies  more  contiguous  to  the 
enemy  than  any  odier.  I  am,  and  have  for  a  long  time  been,  fully 
convinced,  that,  if  we  continue  to  pursue  a  defensive  plan,  the  coun 
try  must  be  inevitably  lost."  But  Colonel  Stanwix  had  no  power 
to  order  an  invasion,  and  Washington  was  left  to  protect  the  inhab 
itants  as  well  as  he  could  with  his  feeble  force. 

The  hardships  he  had  endured,  the  vexations  he  had  experienced 
at  the  hands  of  Dinwiddie,  and  the  incessant  toils  and  anxieties  to 
which  he  was  subjected,  now  seriously  affected  the  spirits  and  bodily 
health  of  Colonel  Washington.  To  his  friend  Robinson  he  com 
plained,  toward  the  close  of  October,  and  it  was  evident  that  he 
contemplated  a  resignation  of  his  commission.  The  speaker,  in 
reply,  after  alluding  to  the  expected  departure  of  the  governor, 
said :  "Till  that  event,  I  beg,  my  dear  friend,  that  you  will  bear,  so 
far  as  a  man  of  honor  ought,  the  discouragements  and  slights  you 
have  so  often  met  with,  and  continue  to  serve  your  country,  as  I 
am  convinced  you  have  always  hitherto  done,  in  the  best  manner 
you  can  with  the  small  assistance  afforded  you." 

Whatever  may  have  been  the  desires  of  Colonel  Washington  to 
continue  in  the  service  at  that  critical  time,  when  he  knew  that  the 
inhabitants  of  the  frontier  rested  their  hopes  of  protection  upon  his 
leadership,  he  was  compelled  to  go  home  early  in  November.  He 
had  suffered  from  dysentery  for  some  time,  and  now  his  malady 
alarmingly  increased.  His  physician  and  friend,  Doctor  Craik — his 
companion-in-arms  in  the  dreadful  battle  on  the  Monongahela,  and 


246  WASHINGTON:    A   BIOGRAPHY.  [1757. 

the  attendant  at  his  death-bed  forty-four  years  later — warned  him 
that  his  life  was  in  danger,  and  that  rest  and  quiet  alone  would 
preserve  it.  Under  these  circumstances  he  proceeded  to  Mount 
Vernon,  where  his  disease  settled  into  a  fever  which  confined  him 
four  months. 

In  the  meanwhile,  the  administration  of  Governor  Dinwiddie* 
came  to  an  end,  and  he  sailed  for  England  in  January,  1758,  leav 
ing  behind  him  an  unenviable  name.  He  was  arrogant  and  narrow- 
minded  ;  and  his  large  acquisitiveness  made  him  not  only  sordid 
and  extortionate,  but  dishonest  in  the  use  of  the  public  money  com 
mitted  to  his  care.f  The  contrast  between  this  haughty  official  of 
the  crown,  and  the  Virginia  colonel  called  into  service  by  the 
popular  voice,  was  palpable  to  every  unprejudiced  mind ;  and  while 
few  pleasant  thoughts  wrent  after  Dinwiddie  upon  the  stormy  ocean, 
from  a  thousand  Virginia  homes  fervent  prayers  ascended  to  the 
throne  of  God  in  behalf  of  the  admired  and  beloved  young  Wash 
ington,  who  was  suffering  in  his  quiet  retreat  upon  the  banks  of  the 
Potomac. 

*  Governor  'Dinwiddie  died  in  1770,  at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 

t  He  was  charged  with  applying  to  his  own  use  twenty  thousand  pounds  sterling,  sent  to  defray 
the  expenses  of  Virginia  for  the  public  service. 


.  25.]  LOUDOUN'S  OFFENSIVE  SPEECH.  247 


CHAPTER   XXY. 

LORD  LOUDOUN'S  OFFENSIVE   SPEECH  AT  BOSTON —  ASSEMBLING  OF  TROOPS  AT 

NEW  YORK EXPEDITION  AGAINST  LOUISBURG THE  PROVINCIAL  TROOPS  IN 

GARRISON AN  EMBARGO  AND   ITS  EFFECTS DEPARTURE   FOR  THE  EAST 

DELAY  AT  HALIFAX  —  EXPEDITION  ABANDONED SIEGE  AND  CAPTURE  OF  FORT 

WILLIAM  HENRY GENERAL  ALARM RECALL   OF  LOUDOUN WILLIAM  PITT 

AND  HIS  MEASURES RESPONSE  IN  THE  COLONIES WASHINGTON'S  RECOVERY 

RESUMPTION  OF  DUTIES DELAYS  AND  DANGERS GENERAL  FORBES IN 
DIAN  DEPREDATIONS FORWARD  MOVEMENT. 

WE  must  now  take  a  brief  retrospection  of  events  apart  from  the 
theatre  upon  which  Washington  was  an  immediate  and  prominent 
actor,  that  we  may  possess  a  clear  understanding  of  his  character 
and  services ;  for  these  events,  forming  a  part  of  the  history  of  his 
times,  have  an  important  relation  thereto.  We  have  already  done 
so,  in  the  course  of  our  narrative,  and  shall  continue  to  do  so, 
when  circumstances  may  seem  to  require  it, 

We  have  referred  to  a  council  which  was  held  at  Boston  in  Janu 
ary,  1757,  composed  of  Lord  Loudoun  and  the  governors  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  of  the  New  England  provinces.  In  that  council  the  earl 
made  a  speech  full  of  insolent  insinuations  and  false  and  absurd 
assertions.  He  magnified  the  services  of  the  English  officers  and 
soldiery,  and  diminished  those  of  the  colonies;  and  he  had  the 
effrontery  to  ascribe  the  public  safety  to  the  regulars,  and  all  of  the 
recent  successes  of  the  French  to  the  bad  conduct  of  the  American 
troops  or  the  colonial  governments.  This  was  said  at  a  time  when 
his  own  imbecile  conduct,  and  the  disgraceful  defeats  of  the  English 
commanders  and  troops,  were  causes  for  universal  and  anxious  con 
cern  throughout  the  colonies.  That  speech  created  much  indigna 
tion,  but  the  murmurs  it  excited  were  soon  silenced  because  of  the 
moderation  of  his  requirements.  He  asked  of  all  New  England  only 


243  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  []?<>7. 

four  thousand  troops  for  the  ensuing  campaign,  and  an  equal  num 
ber  from  New  York  and  New  Jersey. 

With  the  foolish  display  congenial  to  small  minds,  Loudoun  drew 
a  curtain  of  mystery  around  his  plans,  when  there  was  no  occasion 
for  concealment  from  those  who  were  to  co-operate  with  him ;  and 
when  he  required  the  Ne\v  England  troops  to  assemble  at  New  York, 
there  to  be  joined  by  those  of  the  other  two  provinces,  he  conde 
scended  to  reveal  only  the  fact  that  they  were  to  be  conducted  by 
him  to  an  enterprise  of  great  importance.  These  levies  W7ere  speed 
ily  raised,  and  early  in  the  spring  of  1757  his  lordship  found  him 
self  at  the  head  of  more  than  six  thousand  provincial  troops,  all 
animated  by  the  hope  and  expectation  of  being  led  against  the 
French  on  Lake  Champlain,  and  perhaps  to  an  invasion  of  Canada. 
But  they  were  doomed  to  bitter  disappointment. 

We  have  seen  how  Washington's  urgent  recommendation  to  at 
tack  Fort  Duquesne  was  unheeded.  Loudoun  had  resolved  to  make 
the  campaign  a  defensive  one,  so  far  as  the  western  and  southern 
frontiers  were  concerned,  and  to  gather  upon  his  own  brow  all  the 
laurels  of  aggressive  warfare.  And  the  same  policy  was  adopted  in 
regard  to  the  northern  frontier.  If  the  earl  originally  contemplated 
an  expedition  against  the  French  in  the  North,  it  was  not  avowed, 
and  the  idea  was  abandoned ;  and,  to  the  amazement  and  deep  re 
gret  of  the  wisest  and  best  men  in  the  colonies,  he  finally  resolved, 
late  in  summer,  and  after  a  great  deal  of  senseless  bustle,  upon  an 
expedition  against  Louisburg,  on  the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  in  the 
far  East.  He  appears  to  have  had  such  an  expedition  in  contem 
plation  for  some  time,  but  his  determination  was  not  fixed  until  he 
heard  of  the  departure  from  England,  for  Halifax,  of  a  powerful 
squadron  under  Admiral  Holborne  and  Commodore  Holmes,  bear 
ing  five  or  six  thousand  English  troops  commanded  by  George, 
Viscount  Howe. 

The  provincial  troops  who  were  assembled  at  New  York  on  the 
first  of  June,  instead  of  being  "  conducted  to  an  expedition  of  im 
portance,"  were  ordered  to  the  North,  and  were  placed  in  garrison 
at  Forts  Edward  and  William  Henry  for  the  security  of  the  frontier 


JET.  25.]  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  LOUISBURG.  249 

in  that  direction.  Then,  without  an  object  that  was  apparent  to 
the  public,  Loudoun  laid  an  embargo  on  all  the  ships  in  North 
American  ports,  to  the  great  injury  of  the  merchant,  the  planter, 
and  the  laborer.  He  thought,  by  this  means,  to  prevent  intelligence 
of  his  intended  expedition  against  Louisburg  reaching  the  French ; 
forgetting,  or  not  knowing,  that  such  intelligence  was  generally 
communicated  by  the  swift  Indian  couriers,  against  whom  he  could 
make  no  provision  except  celerity  of  movement.  Another  object 
was  to  prevent  exportation,  and  thus  make  provisions  abundant  and 
cheap  for  the  supply  of  the  army  and  navy.  That  effect  was  real 
ized.  The  crops  of  cereals  that  year  were  wonderfully  abundant  in 
America,  and  grain  became  a  drug  in  the  colonies ;  while  England, 
then  in  dread  of  famine,  was  deprived  of  relief  from  that  source.* 
No  one  was  benefited  by  this  ill-judged  and  ill-timed  embargo  but 
the  contractors  who  supplied  the  army  and  navy  with  flour.  These 
put  immense  sums  of  money  into  their  pockets,  and  in  their  profits 
Loudoun  no  doubt  shared. 

Having  been  reinforced  from  England,  Lord  Loudoun  sailed  for 
Halifax,  early  in  July,  with  six  thousand  regular  troops.  There  he 
was  joined  by  the  fleet  of  Holborne  and  the  army  of  Howe.  Instead 
of  pressing  forward  to  the  attack  upon  Louisburg,  the  earl,  with  his 
usual  procrastination,  landed  at  Halifax,  laid  out  a  parade,  planted 
a  vegetable  garden,  and  exercised  his  fine  army  in  mock  battles  and 
sieges.  "  When  August  came,"  says  Bancroft,*)-  "  and  the  spirit  of 
the  army  was  broken,  and  Charles  Lee,J  a  subaltern,  grew  frantic 
with  indignation  at  the  general's  imbecility,  and  Lord  Charles  Hay, 
a  major-general,  expressed  contempt  so  loudly  as  to  be  arrested, || 
the  troops  were  embarked  as  if  for  Louisburg."  But  alarm  for  Lou 
doun  had  come  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind.  Reconnoitring-vessels 
brought  intelligence  that,  while  he  was  loitering  at  Halifax,  Admiral 
De  Bois  de  la  Mo  the  had  arrived  at  Louisburg  with  one  ship  more 

*  Entick's  General  History  of  the  Late  War  —  London,  1763,  ii.,  391. 

t  History  of  the  United  States,  iv.,  258. 

J  A  major-general  in  the  continental  army,  under  Washington,  twenty  years  later. 

II  Lord  Charles  Hay  said  that  Loudoun  was  "  keeping  the  courage  of  his  majesty's  soldiers  at 
bay,  and  expending  the  nation's  wealth  in  planting  cabbages,  when  they  ought  to  have  been  fighting 
the  enemies  of  their  king  and  country,  in  reality."  —  Entick,  ii.,  392 


250  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  []?57. 

than  the  English  fleet  numbered,  and  a  strong  land  force.*  The 
garrison  there  was  said  to  be  much  stronger  than  was  anticipated ; 
and  Loudoun,  fearing  defeat,  turned  his  back  upon  the  French,  and 
sailed  for  New  York.  He  arrived  there  at  the  close  of  August,  to 
hear  of  defeat  and  disgrace  on  the  northern  frontier,  the  result  of 
his  own  ignorance  and  utter  unskilfulness. 

When  the  vigilant  Montcalm  heard  of  Loudoun's  departure  from 
New  York,  he  left  Montreal  with  a  few  followers,  and  hastened 
toward  Ticonderoga.  He  sent  out  subalterns  and  Indian  runners 
in  every  direction  to  gather  the  scattered  Canadians  and  roving 
savages,  and  toward  the  close  of  July  he  was  at  the  head  of  an 
army  of  almost  nine  thousand  men,  including  the  garrisons  of  Ticon 
deroga  and  Crown  Point.  With  these,  and  a  heavy  train  of  artil 
lery,  he  marched  to  the  siege  of  Fort  William  Henry,  at  the  head 
of  Lake  George.  A  like  undertaking,  on  St.  Patrick's  day,  a  few 
months  before,  had  failed ;  now,  the  promises  of  success  were 
abundant. 

Fort  William  Henry  was  garrisoned  by  three  thousand  provincial 
troops,  commanded  by  Colonel  George  Monro,  a  brave  old  English 
officer,  who  felt  strengthened  in  his  position  by  the  close  proximity 
of  his  chief-in-command,  General  Webb,  who  was  at  the  head  of 
more  than  four  thousand  troops  at  Fort  Edward,  only  fifteen  miles 
distant.  But  his  confidence  in  his  commanding  general  was  sadly 
misplaced.  On  the  first  of  August,  the  French  came  up  the  lake,  a 
part  in  a  fleet  of  boats  and  swarms  of  Indian  canoes,  and  a  part  on 
foot  along  its  rugged  shores ;  and  two  days  afterward,  when  all  was 
ready  for  a  siege,  the  instant  surrender  of  Fort  William  Henry  was 
demanded  by  Montcalm.  Colonel  Monro  boldly  refused,  for  he 
knew  the  mettle  of  his  own  men,  and  had  sent  an  express  to  Gen 
eral  Webb  for  relief.  Then  the  huge  cannons  of  the  besiegers  dealt 
heavy  blows  upon  the  weak  fortress.  Monro  still  refused  submis 
sion.  For  five  successive  days  the  veteran  withstood  the  attack, 
with  apparently  undiminished  strength,  and  every  hour  he  expected 

*  Entick  (ii.,  392)  says  that  a  French  packet,  bearing  an  exaggerated  account  of  the  strength  of 
Louisburg,  threw  itself  in  the  way  of  the  English  licet,  was  captured,  and  thus  Loudoun's  informa 
tion  was  obtained. 


JET.  25.]  LOSS  OF  FORT  WILLIAM  HENRY  251 

to  see,  upon  the  adjacent  hills,  strong  reinforcements  from  the  camp 
of  Webb.  But  they  came  not.  His  cowardly  chief,  overrating  the 
forces  of  the  enemy,  not  only  withheld  all  succor,  but  sent  Monro  a 
letter,  advising  him  to  surrender. 

Webb's  letter  was  intercepted  by  Montcalm  at  the  moment  when 
that  general  was  about  to  abandon  the  siege  and  return  to  Ticon- 
deroga.  He  sent  it  to  Monro,  with  a  peremptory  order  for  him  to 
surrender  immediately.  The  gallant  veteran  fought  on,  until  his 
cannons  were  nearly  all  disabled,  and  his  ammunition  spent ;  and 
then,  perceiving  no  hope  of  relief  from  Fort  Edward,  he  hung  out 
a  flag  of  truce.  A  capitulation  was  soon  agreed  upon.  Admiring 
the  valor  of  Monro,  the  French  commander  offered  him  very  honor 
able  terms,  and  promised  a  safe  escort  for  his  army  to  Fort  Edward. 
But  he  promised  more  than  he  could  perform.  The  Indians  thirsted 
for  blood  and  coveted  plunder,  and,  being  two  thousand  strong,  they 
could  not  be  restrained.  When  the  English  had  left  the  fort,  and 
had  entered  the  forests,  the  savages  fell  upon  them  with  great  fury, 
slaughtered  a  large  number,  plundered  their  baggage,  and  pursued 
them  to  within  cannon-shot  of  Fort  Edward.  Montcalm  afterward 
asserted  that  he  beheld  this  massacre  with  grief,  but  he  could  do 
nothing.*  When  the  garrison  had  all  disappeared,  and  the  Indians 
came  back  from  their  foray  upon  them,  he  demolished  the  fort  with 
blows  and  fire,  and  hastened  back  to  Ticonderoga,  a  complete  vic 
tor.  The  fort  was  never  rebuilt,  and  its  site  is  now  occupied  by  a 
public  house  for  the  accommodation  of  summer  visiters. 

This  deadly  blow,  when  there  was  no  army  to  face  the  enemy, 
filled  every  mind  with  fear  for  the  common  safety.  Nothing  but 
the  hopes  of  success  at  Louisburg  appeared  to  keep  up  the  spirits 
of  the  Americans ;  and  when  the  fate  of  that  expedition  was  known, 
the  very  existence  of  the  English  colonies,  menaced  as  they  were 
upon  every  hand,  seemed  to  be  imperiled.  "  God  only  knows  where 

*  It  is  hard  to  believe  that  a  commander  so  eminent  for  his  humanity  and  many  virtues,  should 
have  left  any  effort  unused  to  prevent  the  massacre  and  plunder  of  men  who  relied  upon  his  solemn 
promises  for  protection.  Historians  of  that  day  say  that  he  had  promised  the  Indians  plenty  of 
plunder,  and  found  himself  compelled  to  fulfil  these  promises.  Their  accounts  of  the  cruelties  of 
the  Indians  —  their  massacre  of  women  and  children  —  are  truly  dreadful.  About  fifteen  hundred 
persons,  in  all,  were  murdered 


252  WASHINGTON:   j\  BIOGRAPHY.  [1756. 

this  will  end,"  wrote  a  prominent  citizen  of  New  York,  in  August ; 
"  the  French  execute  almost  everything  they  attempt ;  we  neither 
execute  nor  attempt  anything  but  noise  and  a  prohibition  to  the 
printers  to  tell  the  world  what  they  will  and  do  not  know  without 
their  information." 

With  the  return  of  Loudoun's  expedition  from  the  East,  all  active 
military  operations  ceased,  and  the  colonists  stood  in  the  attitude 
of  defence,  only,  for  the  remainder  of  the  year.  "  Such  was  the  in 
glorious  campaign  of  the  year  1757,  in  North  America,"  says  a  con 
temporary  English  historian* — "a  campaign  which,  by  the  prepa 
rations  made  for  it,  promised  a  total  ruin  to  the  enemy ;  but  which, 
by  procrastination  in  England,  and  mismanagement  in  America,  left 
the  security  of  our  provinces  and  the  interests  of  our  allies  in  a 
much  worse  situation  than  they  were  in  the  foregoing  year." 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  invalid  at  Mount  Vernon.  Although 
Colonel  Washington  wras  suffering  severely  at  the  time,  brighter 

o  O  */  O 

prospects  opened  for  him  as  well  as  for  his  country,  with  the  dawn 
of  1758.  The  imbecile  Loudoun,  too  much  engaged  in  military 
affairs  to  assume  the  duties  of  civil  government,  had  never  offended 
Virginia  by  his  presence  as  her  chief  magistrate ;  and  after  making 
himself  ridiculous  and  odious  in  New  England  by  a  collision  with 
the  government  of  Massachusetts,  which  refused  to  quail  before  his 
official  frowns,  he  was  recalled,  and  was  superseded  in  command  by 
his  lieutenant,  General  Abercrombie.  This  was  a  part  of  the  first 
fruits  of  the  salutary  change  in  administrative  affairs  which  had 
recently  occurred  in  England.  Mortified  by  the  disgraces  which 
had  fallen  upon  the  British  name  by  successive  failures  in  arms  and 
diplomacy,  the  spirit  of  the  nation  had  been  for  some  time  kindling. 
Finally,  the  people  spoke  with  power.  Disgusted  with  a  weak  min 
istry,  and  perceiving  the  palpable  decline  of  Britain's  puissance 
under  the  management  of  inefficient  and  corrupt  members  of  the 
aristocracy,  they  resolved  that  the  control  of  public  affairs  should 
be  directed  by  wis;  r  heads  and  more  active  hands. 

For  a  long  time,  William  Pitt,  the  greatest  commoner  in  England, 

*  Entick. 


— 

/ET.  26.]  PITT  AND  AMERICAN  AFFAIRS.  253 

had  bravely  combated,  with  his  powerful  rhetoric  and  majestic  elo 
quence,  the  policy  of  the  government;  and  every  thoughtful  man 
in  Britain  had  learned  to  admire  his  real  greatness,  and  to  love  him 
for  his  genuine  patriotism.  Therefore,  contrary  to  the  wishes  of  the 
king  who  feared  his  inflexible  virtue,  and  the  intrigues  of  powerful 
placemen  who  felt  dwarfed  by  his  superior  genius,  he  was,  in  compli 
ance  with  the  irresistible  will  of  the  nation,  placed  at  the  head  of  the 
British  ministry.  He  had  received  this  appointment  in  the  spring  of 
the  preceding  year,  was  dismissed  at  the  close  of  May,  and  now,  in 
the  autumn,  he  was  reinstated  in  it  more  firmly  than  before.  His 
elevation  was  hailed  with  enthusiastic  delight  as  an  omen  of  good 
for  the  realm.  "  Assuming  power,  he  bent  all  factions  to  his  au 
thoritative  will."* 

American  affairs  engaged  Pitt's  earliest  attention,  and  he  resolved 
to  prosecute  the  war  there  against  the  French  with  great  vigor. 
Lord  Loudoun  was  recalled,  because  the  prime  minister  "could 
never  ascertain  what  he  was  doing ;"  and  better  and  braver  generals 
than  Abercrombie  were  appointed  to  the  command  of  separate  ex 
peditions.  Pitt  arranged  the  plan  of  the  campaign  of  1758  with 
consummate  skill  and  remarkable  forecast.  Three  expeditions  were 
proposed :  the  first  against  Louisburg  and  the  French  generally  in 
the  East;  the  second  against  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point;  and 
the  third  against  Fort  Duquesne. 

On  the  thirtieth  of  December,  1757,  Pitt  wrote  a  circular  letter 
to  the  governors  of  Pennsylvania  and  the  southern  colonies,  request 
ing  a  hearty  co-operation  from  their  respective  governments  in  aid 
of  General  Forbes,  who  had  been  appointed  to  the  command  of  the 
expedition  against  Fort  Duquesne.  He  agreed  to  provide  the  colo 
nial  troops,  that  might  be  raised  for  this  purpose,  with  arms,  ammu 
nition,  tents,  and  provisions,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  regular 
forces,  at  the  expense  of  the  imperial  government ;  leaving  the  col 
onies  to  bear  only  the  charge  of  recruiting,  clothing,  and  paying  the 
men.  The  governors  were  also  authorized  to  issue  commissions  to 
all  provincial  officers,  from  colonel  downward ;  and  these  were  to 

*  Bancroft,  iv.,  275. 


2-54  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758, 

hold  rank,  in  the  allied  army  of  regulars  and  provincials,  according 
to  their  commissions. 

These  liberal  and  enlightened  measures  excited  much  enthusiasm 
in  America,  and  the  heart  of  Washington  was  made  exceeding  glad 
by  the  prospect  of  having  his  long-cherished  plans  for  the  invasion 
of  the  Ohio  country  speedily  consummated.  Weak  and  feeble  as 
he  was  at  the  close  of  January,  he  resolved  to  go  to  Williamsburg 
to  settle  his  accounts  with  the  committee  and  prepare  for  the  cam 
paign.  He  advised  Mr.  Blair,  the  president  of  the  council,  who  was 
acting  governor  after  the  departure  of  Dinwiddie,  of  his  intention ; 
and  for  that  purpose  he  left  Fredericksburg,  where  he  was  tarrying 
with  his  mother.  But,  on  the  twentieth  of  February,  he  was  com 
pelled  to  write  to  President  Blair :  "  I  set  out  for  Williamsburg,  the 
day  after  the  date  of  my  letter,  but  found  I  was  unable  to  proceed, 
my  fever  and  pain  increasing  upon  me  to  a  high  degree ;  and  the 
physicians  assured  me,  that  I  might  endanger  my  life  by  prosecu 
ting  the  journey."  Twelve  days  afterward  he  wrote  to  Colonel 
Stanwix,  from  Mount  Vernon :  "  I  have  never  been  able  to  return 
to  my  command,  since  I  wrote  to  you  last,  my  disorder  at  times 
returning  obstinately  upon  me,  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  all  the  sons 
of  ^Esculapius  whom  I  have  hitherto  consulted.  At  certain  periods, 
I  have  been  reduced  to  great  extremity,  and  have  now  too  much 
reason  to  apprehend  an  approaching  decay,  being  visited  with  sev 
eral  symptoms  of  such  a  disease.  I  am  at  this  time  under  a  strict 
regimen,  and  shall  set  out  to-morrow  for  Williamsburg,  to  receive 
the  advice  of  the  best  physicians  there.  My  constitution  is  much 
impaired,  and  nothing  can  retrieve  it,  but  the  greatest  care  and  the 
most  circumspect  course  of  life.  This  being  the  case,  as  I  have  now 
no  prospect  left  of  preferment  in  the  military  way,  and  despair  of 
rendering  that  immediate  service  which  my  country  may  require 
from  the  person  commanding  its  troops,  I  have  thoughts  of  quitting 
my  command,  and  retiring  from  all  public  business,  leaving  my  post 
to  be  filled  by  some  other  person  more  capable  of  the  task,  and  who 
may,  perhaps,  have  his  endeavors  crowned  with  better  success  than 
mine  have  been." 


^ET.  26.]  WASHINGTON  HOPEFUL.  255 

From  this  time,  Colonel  Washington's  health  steadily  improved. 
He  visited  Williamsburg,  as  he  proposed,  settled  all  of  his  accounts 
with  the  committee,  held  personal  conferences  with  many  of  the 
leading  men  of  Virginia,  who  were  in  attendance  upon  the  assembly 
then  in  session,  and  in  the  first  week  in  April  he  returned  to  his 
command  at  Fort  Loudoun.  The  assembly,  in  the  meanwhile,  had 
promptly  responded  to  the  wishes  of  Minister  Pitt.  It  authorized 
an  augmentation  of  the  forces  of  the  colony  to  two  thousand  men ; 
offered  the  tempting  bounty  of  ten  pounds  for  every  new  recruit, 
and  made  provisions  for  a  company  of  rangers.  The  troops  were 
formed  into  two  regiments,  the  first  of  which  was  placed  under  the 
command  of  Colonel  Washington,  and  the  second  under  Colonel 
William  Byrd,  of  Westover,  who  had  been  appointed  one  of  the 
commissioners  to  treat  with  the  southern  Indians  toward  the  close 
of  1755.  These  troops  were  all  to  be  placed  under  the  direction  of 
Brigadier-General  Forbes,  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  middle  and 
southern  division  of  his  majesty's  forces.  The  fond  hopes  of  Wash 
ington  now  appeared  on  the  point  of  realization,  and,  breathing 
freer  in  the  atmosphere  of  pleasant  anticipations  by  which  he  was 
surrounded,  he  forgot  all  of  his  past  disappointments  and  vexations. 
In  fact,  his  spirits  were  uncommonly  exuberant.  To  Major  Halket, 
his  companion-in-arms  at  Braddock's  defeat,  who  was  now  the  aid 
of  General  Forbes,  he  wrote  on  the  twelfth  of  April,  in  a  strain  that 
exhibited  his  joyful  emotions :  "  My  dear  Halket,"  he  said,  "  are  we 
to  have  you  once  more  among  us  ?  And  shall  we  revisit  together 
a  hapless  spot,  that  proved  so  fetal  to  many  of  our  former  brave 
companions  ?  Yes ;  and  I  rejoice  at  it,  hoping  it  will  now  be  in  our 
power  to  testify  a  just  abhorrence  of  the  cruel  butcheries  exercised 
on  our  friends,  in  the  unfortunate  day  of  General  Braddock's  defeat ; 
and  moreover,  to  show  our  enemies  that  we  can  practise  all  that 
lenity  of  which  they  only  boast,  without  affording  any  adequate 
proofs." 

At  the  beginning  of  April,  Colonel  Stanwix  was  commissioned  a 
brigadier-general,  and  was  ordered  to  take  post  in  the  Indian  coun 
try  between  the  upper  waters  of  the  Mohawk  river  and  Oneida  lake, 


256  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

and  erect  a  fort  there.  In  a  letter  to  that  officer,  written  on  the  tenth 
of  April,  after  congratulating  him  upon  his  promotion,  Washington 
made  the  modest  request  that  he  might  be  "  mentioned  in  favorable 
terms"  to  General  Forbes  ;  "  not,"  he  said,  "  as  a  person  who  would 
depend  upon  him  for  further  recommendation  to  military  prefer 
ment"  (for  he  served  in  the  campaign  merely  for  the  purpose  of 
using  his  best  endeavors  to  bring  matters  to  a  conclusion),  "  but  as 
a  person  who  would  gladly  be  distinguished  in  some  measure  from 
the  common  run  of  provincial  officers;"  adding— "I  understand  there 
will  be  a  motley  herd  of  us."  General  Stanwix  was  glad  to  find  an 
opportunity  to  speak  favorably  of  an  officer  so  meritorious;  and 
General  Forbes,  who  was  fully  informed  concerning  the  skill  and 
gallantry  which  Washington  had  displayed  on  the  day  wrhen  Brad- 
dock  fell,  was  very  desirous  of  securing  his  counsels.  In  the  cam 
paign  that  ensued,  Washington  enjoyed  the  fullest  confidence  of 
that  officer. 

April  was  passing  rapidly  away,  and  yet  Washington  saw  few 
actual  preparations  for  the  expedition  against  Fort  Duquesne.  Re 
membering  the  disastrous  results  of  procrastination  in  previous 
years,  he  became  impatient ;  and,  on  the  twenty-third  of  April,  he 
wrote  to  General  Forbes,  then  at  Philadelphia,  and  urged  an  early 
campaign,  giving,  as  one  special  reason  for  its  necessity,  the  fact 
that  seven  hundred  friendly  Indians  were  then  in  readiness  to  ac 
company  such  expedition.  He  knew  that  the  approach  of  the 
planting  season  would  make  them  restiff,  and  that  delay  might 
cause  the  loss  of  their  services.  But  his  urgent  recommendations 
were  in  vain.  General  Forbes  moved  slowly;  and  his  excessive 
caution  and  strict  method  became  actual  incapacity  for  the  impor 
tant  service  in  which  he  was  engaged. 

Confiding  implicitly  in  Washington's  judgment  and  discretion,  the 
president  of  the  Virginia  council  had,  in  the  meanwhile,  given  him 
unrestricted  power  to  draft  the  militia,  with  whom  the  forts  were  to 
be  garrisoned  while  the  regular  troops  were  on  the  proposed  expe 
dition.  This  commission  he  accepted  unwillingly,  and  thus  early 
did  he  instinctively  control  that  strong  passion,  the  love  of  power, 


Mr.  26.]  INDIAN  DEPREDATIONS.  257 

which  was  a  marked  trait  in  his  character  through  life.  He  well 
knew  that  he  must  often  appear  as  an  oppressor  to  his  countrymen, 
and  he  was  unwilling  to  face  the  discontents  which  even  the  most 
judicious  exercise  of  this  power  would  certainly  engender.  Yet  he 
shrunk  not  from  the  performance  of  his  duty,  and  commenced  the 
task. 

The  Virginia  assembly  was  very  tardy  in  its  movements,  and  the 
delay  of  the  civil  authority  gave  Washington  much  concern.  He 
found  himself  obliged  not  only  to  perform  arduous  military  duties, 
but  to  suggest  to  the  provincial  government  the  proper  modes  of 
proceeding  in  relation  to  the  army.  The  forces  which  he  was  as 
sembling  were  sadly  in  want  of  arms,  tents,  field-equipage,  and  am 
munition.  He  had  made  frequent  representations,  by  letter,  of  the 
destitute  condition  of  the  Virginia  troops,  and  the  necessity  -of 
prompt  action,  but  without  avail.  Finally,  late  in  May,  he  went 
down  to  Williamsburg,  by  the  express  order  of  Sir  John  St.  Glair, 
General  Forbes's  quartermaster-general,  for  the  purpose  of  enlight 
ening  the  government.  While  there,  he  addressed  quite  a  long 
letter  to  the  president  of  the  council,  in  which  he  laid  before  him 
all  necessary  information  touching  the  wants  of  the  public  service 
in  connection  with  military  affairs.  Having  thus  discharged  his 
duty,  he  added :  "  I  must  now  conclude  by  once  more  begging  that 
your  honor  will  hasten  some  speedy  determination  on  these  several 
matters.  From  w^hat  Sir  John  St.  Clair  has  written,  from  my  orders, 
and  from  the  statements  here  made,  I  conceive  it  must  sufficiently 
appear,  that  the  greatest  despatch  is  necessary.  The  success  of  our 
expedition  will,  in  a  manner,  depend  on  its  early  commencement. 
Every  delay,  therefore,  may  be  attended  with  pernicious  conse 
quences." 

These  anticipations  of  pernicious  consequences  were  speedily 
realized.  The  civil  authorities  remained  strangely  apathetic,  when 
the  very  existence  of  the  Virginia  colony  depended  upon  quick 
and  vigorous  action.  Emboldened  by  the  delay,  a  large  body  of 
French  and  Indians  came  from  the  Ohio,  broke  into  the  settlements 
in  Augusta  county,  murdered  threescore  persons,  ravaged  the  whole 

17 


258  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

region,  and  recrossed  the  Alleghanies  with  plunder,  prisoners,  and 
scalps,  before  the  troops  could  be  assembled  to  oppose  them.  The 
Cherokees,  who  had  been  induced  to  join  the  expedition,  by  prom 
ises  of  rich  presents  from  the  king  and  plunder  from  the  enemy, 
grew  weary  of  wraiting ;  and  at  length,  informed  that  much  more 
delay  was  probable,  they  departed  in  great  ill-humor,  but  promising 
to  return  at  a  proper  time.  The  troops  which,  for  some  time.  Colo 
nel  Washington  had  been  collecting  and  training  at  Winchester, 
became  disorderly,  for  idleness  was  constantly  breeding  mischief. 
The  people,  who  were  compelled  to  provide  food  for  them,  began 
to  murmur  because  of  the  heavy  burden  imposed ;  and  Washington 
was  on  the  point  of  going  down  to  Williamsburg  to  confer  with 
Governor  Fauquier,  who  arrived  from  England  in  June,  when  he 
received  with  joy  an  order  to  march  his  regiment  from  Winchester 
to  Fort  Cumberland.  This  was  the  first  forward  movement  in  the 
invasion. 

While  these  preparations  had  been  slowly  progressing,  the  expe 
ditions  against  Louisburg  and  the  fortresses  on  Lake  Champlain  had 
been  advancing.  As  these  had  ended  while  the  army  under  Gen 
eral  Forbes  was  yet  eastward  of  the  Alleghanies  and  had  accom 
plished  almost  nothing,  we  will  here  leave  the  expedition  against 
Fort  Duquesne  for  awhile,  and  take  a  brief  view  of  stirring  events 
in  the  North  and  East,  for  they  have  a  mutual  relationship  of  great 
importance. 


26.]  SACRIFICES  OF  THE  PEOPLE.  259 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 

GATHERING     OF    PROVINCIAL    TROOPS SACRIFICES    OF    THE    PEOPLE COMPARI 
SON    OF    THE    FRENCH  AND    ENGLISH SECOND    EXPEDITION  AGAINST    LOUISBURG 

BRAVERY    OF     WOLFE THE     SIEGE    AND     CAPITULATION EFFECTS     OF    THE 

TRIUMPH EXPEDITION    AGAINST    TICONDEROGA    AND     CROWN     POINT ABER- 

CROMBIE   AT   LAKE    GEORGE NIGHT-VOYAGE    ON   THE   LAKE SKIRMISHES,  AND 

DEATH    OF    LORD    HOWE  —  ATTACK    ON    TICONDEROGA RRPULSE    OF   THE    ENG 
LISH —  BRADSTREET'S  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  FRONTENAC. 

DETERMINED  to  strike  a  deadly  blow  at  the  root  of  troubles  in 
America,  instead  of  gently  lopping  off  the  branches,  Pitt,  in  arran 
ging  the  campaign  of  1758,  contemplated  the  conquest  of  Canada, 
and  the  utter  demolition  of  French  dominion  in  the  New  World. 
For  these  purposes  ample  preparations  were  made.  The  liberal 
promises  of  the  prime  minister  elicited  a  corresponding  liberality  on 
the  part  of  the  colonists.  In  every  province  where  requisition  was 
made,  men  came  forward  in  abundance,  ready  to  bear  arms ;  and 
the  people,  filled  with  enthusiasm,  submitted  to  taxation — enor 
mous  taxation  in  some  instances — with  cheerfulness.  In  Boston, 
individual  merchants  paid  taxes  that  year  to  the  amount  of  two 
thousand  dollars ;  and  Massachusetts,  alone,  made  advances  in  the 
aggregate  of  not  less  than  a  million  of  dollars.  The  tax  on  real 
estate  in  that  province  was  equal  to  two  thirds  of  the  whole  in 
come  ;  and  not  less  than  seven  thousand  men  were  raised  there  for 
the  army. 

From  Virginia  northward  each  province  raised  ample  supplies  of 
men  and  money.  The  Royal  American  regiment,  sent  to  protect 
the  Carolinas,  was  recalled,  to  co-operate  with  the  provincials. 
Large  reinforcements  of  regular  troops  came  from  England ;  and 
when  he  was  ready  for  action,  Abercrombie  had  fifty  thousand  men 
at  his  disposal.  Of  these,  twenty-two  thousand  were  regulars,  and 


260  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

the  remainder  were  provincials.  The  French  were  much  weaker, 
in  men  and  means.  The  whole  male  population  of  Canada,  able  to 
bear  arms,  did  not  exceed  twenty  thousand,  while  the  regular  troops 
numbered  not  more  than  five  thousand.  Tillage  having  been  cur 
tailed  by  the  employment  of  cultivators  in  the  ranks  of  the  army, 
Canada  was  menaced  with  famine  that  year.  But  the  French  had 
strong  and  numerous  allies  among  the  Indian  tribes,  and  active  and 
skilful  military  leaders. 

The  first  blow  struck  by  the  English  fell  upon  Louisburg.  For 
that  purpose,  large  preparations  had  been  made.  Major-General 
Sir  Jeffery  Amherst,  a  soldier  of  well-earned  distinction,  who  had 
been  in  military  service  ever  since  his  fourteenth  year,  was  the 
commander-in-chief  of  the  expedition.  He  arrived  at  Halifax,  near 
the  close  of  May,  with  more  than  thirteen  thousand  well-disciplined 
troops.  His  second  in  command  was  Brigadier-General  James 
Wolfe,  a  young  man  of  less  than  two-and-thirty  years,  but  having 
had  eighteen  years  of  military  experience.  This  army,  well  offi 
cered  and  supplied,  was  borne  by  a  fleet  of  twenty-two  ships-of-the- 
line  and  fifteen  frigates,  commanded  by  Admiral  Boscawen,  then  in 
the  maturity  of  manhood's  prime,  and  honored  for  his  skill  and  ex 
perience  in  naval  warfare.  With  such  preparations  and  such  mate 
rials,  the  English  commanders  felt  confident  of  victory ;  and  Bos 
cawen  remarked,  when  told  at  Halifax  that  several  French  men-of- 
war  and  transports  had  gone  into  the  harbor  of  Louisburg :  "  I  am 
glad  of  it ;  if  all  the  fleet  of  France  goes  in,  I  will  follow  them ; 
there  is  room  enough  for  us  all; — the  more  we  find  there,  the  more 
captures  we  will  make."*  This  was  no  idle  boask. 

The  English  left  Halifax  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  May,  and  on  the 
second  of  June  the  fleet  anchored  in  Gabarus  bay,  a  few  miles  from 
Louisburg.  Behind  strong  outworks  and  in  the  main  fortress  which 

*  Knox's  Historical  Journal  of  the  Campaigns  in  North  America,  for  the  Years  1757,  1758, 
1759,  and  1760:  i.,  134.  The  Honorable  Edward  Boscawen  was  the  third  son  of  Hugh,  first  Vis 
count  Falmouth.  He  was  made  admiral  of  the  blue  in  February,  1758,  and  appointed  to  command 
the  naval  forces  sent  to  America.  He  had  already  distinguished  himself  at  the  taking  of  Porto  Bello, 
at  Carthagena,  and  at  the  engagement  with  the  French  fleet  off  Cape  Finisterre.  He  died  of  a  fever, 
in  1761,  in  his  fiftieth  year. 


JET.  26.]  CAPTURE  OF  LOUtSBURG.  261 

guarded  the  doomed  town,  were  twenty-five  hundred  French  regu 
lars  and  six  or  seven  hundred  Canadian  militia  and  Indians,  under 
the  command  of  the  experienced  and  brave  Chevalier  de  Drucour. 
In  the  harbor  were  five  French  ships-of-the-line  and  five  frigates, 
three  of  the  latter  being  sunken  at  the  entrance  to  the  basin,  to 
prevent  the  ingress  of  Boscawen's  vessels.  For  a  week  after  the 
arrival  of  the  English,  a  heavy  storm  of  wind  swept  along  the  coast, 
and  the  surf  dashed  so  violently  upon  the  rocky  shore,  that  no  boat 
could  reach  it  without  encountering  fearful  perils.  At  length  the 
intrepid  Wolfe,  becoming  impatient,  obtained  permission  to  attempt 
landing  with  a  strong  detachment,  to  attack  the  French  outworks. 
After  a  fierce  struggle  with  the  waves,  the  young  leader  and  his 
followers  landed  before  dawn  on  the  morning  of  the  eighth  of  June  ; 
and  in  spite  of  the  severe  fire  of  the  French,  and  the  ramparts  of 
felled  trees  that  lay  in  their  way,  they  took  the  advanced  batteries 
and  drove  the  enemy  into  the  main  works.  The  other  division 
effected  a  landing  during  the  morning,  and  before  night  Louisburg 
was  formally  invested.  The  conduct  of  Wolfe  and  his  detachment 
in  opening  the  way  to  conquest,  was  applauded  in  highest  terms  of 
eulogium,  and  commended  him  to  Pitt  as  a  worthy  leader  against 
Quebec  the  following  year.  By  his  side  was  young  Montgomery, 
from  the  north  of  Ireland,  then  just  arrived  at  manhood.  Eighteen 
years  afterward,  he  espoused  the  cause  of  the  American  patriots, 
and  fell  a  martyr  to  liberty  at  the  foot  of  Cape  Diamond,  below  the 
citadel  of  Quebec. 

Slowly  but  surely  the  English  approached  Louisburg,  under  cover 
of  mortars  and  siege-guns.  The  French  kept  up  an  incessant  fire 
from  their  batteries  and  ships,  but  with  little  effect.  For  almost 
fifty  days  the  conflict  w^ent  on.  Then  a  bombshell  fell  upon  one  of 
the  largest  of  the  French  ships  and  set  it  on  fire.  Two  others  were 
consumed ;  and  very  soon  the  remainder  of  the  vessels  in  the  har 
bor  were  captured  or  destroyed.  Yet  the  gallant  Drucour  fought 
on,  until  the  fortress  and  half  the  town  were  heaps  of  ruins,  and 
forty  of  his  fifty-two  cannon  were  dismounted.  At  last,  yielding  to 
the  prayers  of  the  people  and  a  sense  of  the  utter  futility  of  further 


262  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

defence,  Drucour  capitulated,  and  he  and  his  garrison  became  pris- 
oners-of-war.  On  the  twenty-sixth  of  July,  Louisburg,  and  with  it 
the  islands  of  Cape  Breton  and  St.  John  (now  Prince  Edward's), 
passed  into  the  possession  of  the  English ;  and  where  the  grand  for 
tress —  the  "Gibraltar  of  America"  —  once  stood,  a  few  fishermen's 
huts  are  now  seen.  Almost  six  thousand  prisoners  were  sent  to 
England ;  and  the  brother  of  General  Amherst,*  who  preceded  the 
fleet  and  bore  the  first  intelligence  of  victory  to  the  king,  carried 
with  him  also  eleven  standards  taken  from  the  French.  These  were 
hung  as  choice  trophies  in  St.  Paul's  cathedral,  after  being  borne  in 
triumph  through  the  streets  of  London,  accompanied  by  a  parade 
of  horse  and  foot,  while  all  England  was  vocal  with  rejoicings.  By 
this  victory,  the  French  dominion  in  America  was  greatly  weakened, 
and  the  English  became  masters  of  the  coast  almost  to  the  mouth 
of  the  St.  Lawrence. 

The  troops  destined  for  the  expedition  against  Ticonderoga  and 
Crown  Point  had  rendezvoused  at  Albany ;  and  before  Amherst  and 
Wolfe  had  achieved  their  great  victory  in  the  East,  Abercrombie 
was  at  the  head  of  Lake  George  with  almost  sixteen  thousand  men, 
and  a  heavy  train  of  artillery.  Of  these,  more  than  six  thousand 
were  regular  troops ;  the  remainder  were  levies  from  the  provinces 
of  New  England,  New  York,  and  New  Jersey.  Among  the  subaltern 
provincial  officers  were  Putnam  and  Stark,  who  afterward  became 
famous  in  the  War  for  Independence.  The  soul  of  the  expedition 
was  the  young  Lord  Howe,  who  seemed  to  regard  his  titular  dis 
tinction  less  as  a  proof  of  noble  nature  than  as  an  incentive  to  noble 
action,  and  he  was  truly  beloved  by  all  the  soldiers.  Although 
Abercrombie,  a  friend  of  the  earl  of  Bute  (a  pedantic  Scotch  cour 
tier  of  much  influence  with  the  king),  was  nominally  the  commander- 

*  Major-General  Amherst  entered  the  army  in  1731,  and  acted  as  aid-de-camp  to  Sir  John  Li- 
gonier  at  the  hattles  of  Dettingen,  Fontenoy,  and  Roucoux.  He  was  also  aid  to  the  duke  of  Cum 
berland  at  Lafeldt  and  Hastenbech.  In  1756,  he  became  major-general;  and  in  1760  he  was 
appointed  commander-in-chicf  of  the  British  forces  in  America.  In  1772,  he  was  made  lieutenant- 
general  of  ordnance;  in  1776,  was  created  Baron  Amherst  of  Holmesdale ;  in  1778,  appointed 
commander-in-chief  of  the  land  forces  in  Great  Britain  ;  in  1788,  created  Baron  Amherst  of  Mon 
treal,  in  Kent;  and,  in  1796,  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  field-marshal.  He  died  in  1797,  at  the 
age  of  eighty-one  years. 


^ET.  26.]  AN  ARMY  ON  LAKE  GEORGE.  263 

in-chief,  Pitt  had  selected  Lord  Howe  as  his  lieutenant,  with  the  full 
conviction  that  he  alone  could  lead  the  troops  to  victory. 

In  a  little  more  than  a  thousand  small  boats,  and  with  the  artil 
lery  mounted  upon  rafts,  Abercrombie  and  his  army  embarked  upon 
Lake  George  on  the  fifth  of  July.  That  flotilla,  led  by  Lord  Howe 
in  a  large  boat,  made  a  grand  display,  with  its  banners  flying,  and 
martial  music  awakening  the  echoes  of  the  hills  which  enclose  that 
beautiful  sheet  of  water.  At  twilight  the  whole  army  landed  upon 
a  grassy  cape  on  the  western  shore,  and  after  midnight*  the  entire 
flotilla  was  again  in  motion.  The  sky  was  clear  and  starry,  and  not 
a  breeze  ruffled  the  dark  waters  as  they  slept  quietly  in  the  shadows 
of  the  mountains.  The  oars  were  all  muifled ;  and  so  silently  did 
the  vessels  move  in  the  darkness,  that  not  a  scout  upon  the  hills 
observed  them.  Day  dawned  just  as  they  were  abreast  of  the  Blue 
mountain,  four  miles  from  their  landing-place  at  the  foot  of  the  lake ; 
and  the  first  intimation  which  the  French  pickets  had  of  the  ap 
proach  of  the  English  was  the  full  blaze  of  their  scarlet  uniforms 
which  burst  upon  their  sight  as  the  army  swept  around  a  point  and 
prepared  to  land. 

Montcalm  was  yet  in  the  general  command  of  the  French  in  Can 
ada,  and  was  at  Ticonderoga  with  four  thousand  troops.  M.  de  Levi 
was  hourly  expected  with  three  thousand  more  ;  and  having  strength 
ened  Fort  Carillon,-)-  and  cast  up  strong  breastworks  across  the  neck 
of  the  peninsula  of  Ticonderoga,  Montcalm  felt  confident  of  success 
against  assailants.  When,  on  the  fifth,  a  white  flag  upon  the  mount 
ains  informed  him  that  the  English  had  embarked  upon  Lake  George, 
he  sent  forward  a  battalion  to  occupy  a  breastwork  of  logs  near  the 
foot  of  the  lake  and  oppose  the  landing  of  the  British.  That  oppo- 

*  It  was  Saturday  when  the  troops  went  down  Lake  George.  As  it  was  past  midnight,  and 
really  Sunday  morning,  when  they  re-embarked,  Abercrombie  named  the  cape  where  they  had  landed 
Sabbath-day  Point.  While  on  the  point,  Lord  Howe  called  around  him  several  of  the  young  provin 
cial  officers  who  accompanied  the  'expedition,  and  made  many  anxious  inquiries  about  Ticonderoga, 
its  strength,  etc.  Captain  Stark  was  invited  to  sup  with  him,  and  that  officer  believed,  from  many 
things  said  by  the  young  nobleman  that  night,  that  he  had  a  presentiment  of  the  fate  that  awaited 
him  the  next  day. 

t  This  is  a  French  word  that  had  the  same  reference  to  rapid,  rushing,  noisy  waters,  as  the  In 
dian  word  Cheonderoga,  applied  to  the  same  spot.  Tionderoga,  and  not  Ticonderoga,  is  doubtless 
the  correct  orthography.  The  English  letter-writers  of  that  period,  and  later,  wrote  it  without  the 
harsh  9 


...J 


264  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758 

sition  was  futile ;  and  as  the  army  of  Abercrombie,  moving  in  four 
columns  (the  regulars  in  the  centre  and  the  provincials  on  the 
flanks),  commenced  their  march  toward  Ticonderoga,  the  French 
set  fire  to  and  abandoned  their  breastwork.  As  they  destroyed  the 
bridges  in  their  retreat,  Abercrombie  pressed  forward  without  his  * 
artillery.  The  forest  was  dense,  and  marshes  abounded.  Deficient 
in  reliable  guides,  the  army  was  soon  in  great  confusion.  Then 
scouts  came  with  intelligence  that  the  advanced  guard  of  the  French 
were  near.  These  were  the  retreating  battalion,  who,  lost  in  the 
deep  forest,  had  been  wandering  for  many  hours,  endeavoring  to 
find  their  way  back  to  their  lines.  Major  Putnam,  with  a  hundred 
rangers,  immediately  advanced  as  a  scouting-party  to  reconnoitre. 
Lord  Howe,  eager  to  engage  in  the  first  attack,  joined  Putnam. 
They  dashed  through  the  woods,  and  in  a  few  minutes  were  engaged 
in  a  hot  skirmish  with  the  French.  Lord  Howe  was  instantly  slain 
by  a  bullet,  but  the  French  were  repulsed  with  a  loss  of  more  than 
four  hundred  in  killed  and  wounded.  Dismayed  at  the  death  of 
Howe,  and  still  in  great  confusion,  the  English  fell  back  to  the  land 
ing-place.  There  was  deep  grief  at  the  loss  of  the  young  com 
mander.  "  With  him,"  said  Mante,  "  the  soul  of  the  army  seemed 
to  expire."  Captain  Philip  Schuyler  conveyed  his  body  to  Albany, 
and  placed  it  in  his  family  vault ;  and  now  the  remains  of  the  gal 
lant  soldier  repose  beneath  the  chancel  of  St.  Peter's  church  in  that 
city.  He  was  less  than  thirty-four  years  of  age,  yet  he  had  won 
imperishable  distinction ;  and,  in  testimony  of  her  appreciation,  Mas 
sachusetts  appropriated  a  thousand  dollars  for  the  erection  of  a 
monument  to  his  memory  in  Westminster  abbey.* 

Early  on  the  following  day,  Colonel  Bradstreet  advanced  and 
took  possession  of  some  fortified  mills,  and  repaired  the  bridges. 
The  engineer  was  sent  to  reconnoitre  the  French  lines  on  the  neck, 
and  on  his  reporting  that  the  works  were  unfinished,  and  might 

*  George  Augustus,  Viscount  Howe,  was  an  elder  brother  of  Richard  and  William,  one  a  naval 
and  the  other  a  military  commander  in  America,  during  a  part  of  the  War  for  Independence.  Rich 
ard  succeeded  to  the  title  and  estates  of  his  deceased  brother.  Abercrombie  wrote  :  "  He  was  the 
first  man  that  fell ;  and  as  he  was,  very  deservedly,  universally  beloved  and  respected  throughout 
the  whole  army,  it  is  easy  to  conceive  the  grief  and  consternation  his  untimely  fall  occasioned." 


ZET.  26.]  ENGLISH  REPULSED  AT  TICONDEROGA.  265 

easily  be  taken  by  storm,  Abercrombie  moved  forward  with  the 
whole  army,  and  took  post  within  two  miles  of  Ticonderoga.  There 
he  was  joined  by  Sir  William  Johnson,  with  almost  five  hundred 
warriors  of  the  Six  Nations,  from  the  Mohawk  river. 

Anxious  to  make  the  assault  before  the  garrison  could  be  rein 
forced,  Abercrombie  pressed  forward  on  the  eighth,  without  waiting 
for  his  cannon,  when  it  was  found  that  the  breastworks  were  full 
eight  feet  in  height,  very  strong,  and  completely  sheltered  by  a 
deep  abatis.  Behind  this  the  whole  French  force  lay,  awaiting  the 
orders  of  the  vigilant  and  skilful  Montcalm,  whose  quick  eye  was 
upon  every  point.  At  the  proper  moment  his  order  was  given,  and 
a  heavy  fire  of  artillery  was  opened  upon  the  assailants.  Yet  in 
the  face  of  this  terrible  storm  the  regulars  pushed  gallantly  forward, 
determined  to  scale  the  works,  and  carry  them  by  force  of  the  sword 
and  bayonet.  The  grenadiers,  and  Lord  John  Murray's  Scotch 
Highland  regiment,  made  charge  after  charge  for  three  hours. 
Many  officers  endeavored  to  hew  their  way  through  the  prostrate 
branches  with  their  swords,  while  scores  of  brave  men  were  falling 
around  them.  Never  did  troops  show  bolder  courage  or  more  ob 
stinate  persistence  against  fearful  obstacles;  and  when  at  length, 
shattered  and  in  confusion,  some  of  the  British  battalions  fired  upon 
each  other  and  a  retreat  was  sounded,  nineteen  hundred  and  forty- 
four  brave  soldiers  lay  dead  or  wounded  on  that  battle-field.  Du 
ring  all  that  contest  of  more  than  four  hours,  Johnson's  Indians 
looked  on  with  stolid  indifference ;  while  the  cowardly  Abercrombie 
remained  in  safety  at  the  mill,  and  could  not  be  found  when  most 
needed  to  rally  the  flying  troops,  bring  up  his  artillery,  and  secure 
a  victory  at  the  last,  for  he  had  still  more  than  four  times  as  many 
soldiers  as  Montcalm.  At  length  he  appeared,  and,  agitated  by  ex 
treme  fear,  he  hurried  the  troops  to  the  foot  of  Lake  George  with 
so  much  precipitancy,  that  nothing  but  the  cool  courage  and  manli 
ness  of  Bradstreet  prevented  a  disastrous  rush  into  the  boats.  All 
were  embarked  on  the  morning  of  the  ninth ;  and  that  evening  the 
disgraced  commander,  with  trailing  banners,  was  comforted  by  the 
fact  that  the  lake  was  between  himself  and  Montcalm. 


266  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

Intelligence  of  this  disaster  grieved  Pitt  sorely.  He  well  knew 
that  the  chief  blame  rested  upon  the  incompetency  of  Abercrombie, 
and  he  chid  himself  for  listening  to  Bute,  and  giving  such  an  officer 
the  chief  command.  The  shallow  Bute,  desirous  of  sustaining  his 
dishonored  friend,  wrote  to  the  premier :  "  I  think  this  check,  dear 
Pitt,  affects  you  too  strongly.  The  general  and  the  troops  have 
done  their  duty,  and  appear,  by  the  numbers  lost,  to  have  fought 
with  the  greatest  intrepidity ;  to  have  tried  all  that  men  could  do, 
to  force  their  way.  The  commander  seems  broken-hearted  with 
being  forced  to  retreat."*  And  the  young  prince  George,  then  in 
his  twenty-first  year,  wishing  to  say  something  to  please  somebody, 
wrote :  "  I  fear  this  check  will  prevent  Abercrombie's  pushing  to 
Crown  Point ;  but  in  this,  as  in  everything  else,  I  rely  entirely  on 
Providence,  and  the  gallant  spirit  of  my  countrymen.  Continuing 
to  trust  in  that  superior  help,  I  make  no  doubt  that,  if  I  mount  this 
throne,  I  shall  still,  by  restoring  the  love  of  virtue  and  religion, 
make  this  country  great  and  happy ."f  These  men,  breathing  the 
atmosphere  of  a  corrupt  court,  could  not  comprehend  the  genius  of 
Pitt,  nor  the  magnitude  of  the  events  about  which  they  were  utter 
ing  such  miserable  commonplaces ;  and  their  words  increased  the 
keenness  of  the  pangs  which  they  were  intended  to  alleviate. 

Abercrombie  sent  his  artillery  and  ammunition  to  Albany  for 
security,  and  then  commenced  the  erection  of  a  military  work  at 
the  head  of  the  lake,  which  he  called  Fort  George.  While  his  troops 
were  thus  engaged,  the  active  partisans  of  Montcalm  were  out  in 
every  direction,  harassing  the  provincials  and  terrifying  the  scat 
tered  settlers.  Opposed  to  these  were  the  vigilant  Rogers  and  his 
bold  border  rangers,  and  the  cool  and  persistent  Putnam  with  his 
equally  brave  scouts.  They  beat  back  the  French  and  their  dusky 
allies.  At  length,  Putnam  was  made  a  prisoner ;  was  prepared  for 
the  fire-torture  in  the  deep  forest;  was  saved  by  a  providential 
shower  which  quenched  the  flames,  and  the  generous  arm  of  Molang, 
his  enemy  in  the  field ;  and,  bruised  and  half-naked,  he  was  carried 
a  captive  to  Montreal.  The  stolid  Abercrombie  finally  marched, 

*  Correspondence  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham,  i.,  335.  t  Ibid.,  i.,  336. 


M'T.  26.]  BRADSTREET'S  EXPEDITION.  267 

with  his  whole  army  of  regulars,  to  Albany,  and  put  them  into  win 
ter  quarters.  Then  he  returned  to  England,  where  he  calumniated 
the  Americans  in  order  to  screen  his  own  imbecility ;  and,  as  a  mem 
ber  of  Parliament,  his  vote  was  always  given  in  support  of  those 
oppressive  measures  which  finally  drove  the  colonists  to  rebellion. 

While  Abercrombie  was  at  the  head  of  Lake  George,  Colonel 
Bradstreet,  who  had  obtained  permission  to  lead  a  detachment 
against  Fort  Frontenac,  situated  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Ontario,  where 
Kingston  now  stands,  was  nobly  accomplishing  his  purpose.  He 
had  long  contemplated  such  an  expedition,  and  it  had  been  warmly 
approved  by  the  fallen  Howe.  Frontenac  was  a  post  of  great  im 
portance.  There  the  Indian  tribes  resorted  for  traffic,  and  there 
plans  and  alliances  between  the  French  and  the  savages  who  were 
hostile  to  the  English  were  put  in  operation.  It  was  also  a  maga 
zine  of  supplies  for  the  more  southern  French  forts. 

With  a  few  men,  the  gallant  Bradstreet  went  up  the  Mohawk 
valley  to  the  Oneida  carrying-place,  where  Brigadier-General  Stan- 
wix  was  engaged  with  a  strong  provincial  force  in  erecting  a  fort. 
That  officer,  perceiving  the  importance  of  Bradstreet's  expedition, 
placed  more  than  twenty-nine  hundred  men  at  his  disposal.*  He 
was  also  joined  by  some  warriors  of  the  Six  Nations,  led  by  Red 
Head,  a  powerful  Onondaga  chief.  With  eight  pieces  of  cannon 
and  two  mortars  in  charge  of  a  small  detachment  of  the  Royal  ar 
tillery,  this  little  army  pushed  on  through  the  forest  to  Oswego,  and 
there  embarked  upon  Lake  Ontario. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  August,  Bradstreet  landed  within  a  mile 
of  Fort  Frontenac.  It  was  a  work  of  considerable  magnitude  and 
strength,  being  built  of  stone,  quadrangular  in  form,  with  four  bas 
tions,  and  almost  three  fourths  of  a  mile  in  circumference.  Upon  it 
were  mounted  sixty  pieces  of  cannon  and  sixteen  mortars,  but  there 
was  a  garrison  of  only  one  hundred  and  ten  men  and  a  few  Indians, 
to  use  them.  These,  dismayed  by  the  formidable  appearance  of 

*  These  troops,  according  to  Mante,  consisted  of  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  regulars,  eleven 
hundred  and  twelve  New  York  provincials,  four  hundred  and  twelve  from  New  Jersey,  six  hundred 
and  seventy-five  from  Boston,  three  hundred  and  eighteen  from  Rhode  Island,  and  three  hundred 
batteaux-men. 


268  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

Bradstreet's  army,  fled  or  surrendered  at  discretion  on  the  twenty- 
seventh  ;  and  the  fort,  with  an  immense  quantity  of  stores  destined 
for  Forts  Niagara  and  Duquesne,  and  nine  armed  vessels  in  the  har 
bor,  fell  into  the  hands  of  Bradstreet.  It  was  a  complete  and  almost 
a  bloodless  victory ;  but  a  malignant  fever,  which  broke  out  in  Brad- 
street's  camp  before  he  left,  swept  away  five  hundred  of  his  men. 
He  demolished  the  fort,  burned  seven  of  the  vessels,  destroyed  such 
stores  as  he  could  not  carry  away,  and  returned  to  Lake  George  by 
way  of  Oswego,  leaving  his  troops  to  complete  Fort  Stanwix,  where 
the  village  of  Rome  now  stands.  Among  the  officers  who  accom 
panied  Bradstreet  was  Woodhull,  who  perished  on  Long  Island  at 
the  beginning  of  the  Revolution ;  and  also  Yan  Schaick,  who  became 
a  colonel  in  the  New  York  continental  line. 

Bradstreet's  victory  was  of  great  importance  at  that  moment,  for 
the  expedition  against  Fort  Duquesne  was  in  motion.  It  secured 
the  dominion  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  cut  off  the  chief  source  of  sup 
plies  for  the  southern  fortresses  of  the  enemy.  It  alarmed  the  In 
dians  ;  and  the  Canadians,  exhausted  by  the  war,  and  seeing  no 
hopes  of  protection  for  the  French  frontier  from  Lake  George  to 
the  Ohio,  w^ere  clamorous  for  peace.  Montcalm  was  disturbed.  He 
saw  the  full  significance  of  the  victory  and  the  power  of  its  influ 
ence,  and  he  wrote  to  Yaudreuil :  "  I  am  not  discouraged,  nor  are 
my  troops ;  we  are  resolved  to  find  our  graves  under  the  ruins  of 
the  colony." 


26.]  THE  INVADING  ARMY.  269 


CHAPTER   XXVII. 

COMPOSITION  OF  THE  ARMY  UNDER  GENERAL  FORBES MARCH  OF  VIRGINIA 

TROOPS  TO  FORT  CUMBERLAND BOQUET  AT  RAYSTOWN ADOPTION  OF  THE 

INDIAN  COSTUME BRADDOCK's  ROAD A  NEW  ROUTE  PROPOSED UNWISE 

SCHEMES  ABANDONED WASHINGTON  OPPOSES  THE  NEW  ROUTE HIS  INTER 
VIEW  WITH  COLONEL  BOQUET HISTORY  OF  BRADDOCK's  ROAD NEW  ROUTE 

ADOPTED  —  WASHINGTON'S  DISAPPOINTMENT  —  HIS   ELECTION  TO   THE  HOUSE 

OF  BURGESSES HIS  MATRIMONIAL  ENGAGEMENTS — TARDY  MOVEMENTS   OF  THE 

ARMY  —  GRANT'S  DISASTROUS  EXPEDITION  —  WASHINGTON'S  ADVANCE  AGAINST 
FORT  DUQUESNE END  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN WASHINGTON  RETURNS  HOME. 

THERE  was  great  joy  m  the  heart  of  Washington  when,  late  in 
June,  orders  came  from  General  Forbes  for  the  Virginia  troops  to 
commence  their  march  toward  Fort  Duquesne.  The  army  destined 
for  this  expedition  numbered  between  six  and  seven  thousand  men, 
consisting  of  twelve  hundred  Highlanders  from  the  Carolinas ;  three 
hundred  and  fifty  of  the  Royal  American  regiment,  recalled  from 
the  South ;  about  twenty-seven  hundred  Pennsylvania  levies ;  six 
teen  hundred  Virginians,  in  two  regiments ;  between  two  and  three 
hundred  men  from  Fort  Frederick,  in  Maryland  ;  and  two  companies 
of  North  Carolina  militia,  under  Major  Waddell,  who  afterward  be 
came  conspicuous  in  that  province,  in  the  difficulties  known  as  the 
Regulator  War,  in  1771. 

The  Virginia  regiments  marched  from  Winchester  to  Fort  Cum 
berland  in  detachments,  except  a  small  garrison  left  at  Fort  Lou- 
doun,  and  a  strong  party  under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Adam  Stephen. 
These  detachments  were  safe  convoys  for  wagons  and  pack-horses 
on  the  way.  They  were  all  assembled  at  Cumberland  early  in  July, 
and  officers  and  troops,  confident  of  success,  were  in  high  spirits. 

At  Raystown  (now  Bedford),  in  Pennsylvania,  thirty  miles  from 
Fort  Cumberland,  lay  Colonel  Boquet,  with  a  corps  of  regulars. 


270  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

He  was  an  active  and  ambitious  officer ;  and  having  been  appointed 
to  the  command  of  the  advanced  division,  he  made  Raystown  the 
headquarters  of  the  gathering  army  of  invaders.  Thither  Lieuten 
ant-Colonel  Stephen  marched,  by  way  of  Shippensburg,  in  Pennsyl 
vania,  with  six  companies  of  the  first  Virginia  regiment ;  and  toward 
that  point  the  Pennsylvania  and  other  troops  slowly  approached. 

Washington  continued  to  be  annoyed  by  the  remissness  of  the 
civil  authorities  in  furnishing  his  troops  with  necessary  supplies. 
From  his  camp  near  Fort  Cumberland  he  wrote  to  Colonel  Boquet 
on  the  third  of  July,  apprizing  him  of  his  arrival  there,  and  adding : 
"  My  men  are  very  bare  of  regimental  clothing,  and  I  have  no  pros 
pect  of  a  supply.  So  far  from  regretting  this  want  during  the  pres 
ent  campaign,  if  I  were  left  to  pursue  my  own  inclination,  I  would 
not  only  order  the  men  to  adopt  the  Indian  dress,  but  cause  the 
officers  to  do  it  also,  and  be  the  first  to  set  the  example  myself. 
Nothing  but  the  uncertainty  of  obtaining  the  general  approbation 
causes  me  to  hesitate  a  moment  to  leave  my  regimentals  at  this 
place,  and  proceed  as  light  as  any  Indian  in  the  woods.  It  is  an 
unbecoming  dress,  I  own,  for  an  officer;  but  convenience,  rather 
than  show,  should  be  consulted.  The  reduction  of  bat-horses  alone 
would  be  sufficient  to  recommend  it ;  for  nothing  is  more  certain 
than  that  less  baggage  would  be  required,  and  the  public  benefited 
in  proportion."  This  sensible  suggestion  received  a  sympathetic 
response  from  Boquet.  But  others  of  the  regulars  demurred.  It 
could  hardly  be  expected  that  the  British  officers,  trained  to  blind 
obedience  of  orders,  would  turn  from  the  deep  rut  of  precedence 
and  routine  at  the  suggestion  of  a  provincial  colonel.  Like  Brad- 
dock,  they  preferred  to  walk  according  to  the  straight  rules  of  mili 
tary  tactics,  though  treading  at  every  step  upon  common  sense  and 
wise  expediency,  than  to  adapt  themselves  and  their  followers  to 
the  exigency  of  the  occasion.  Yet  Washington  tried  the  experi 
ment,  and  it  was  successful.  He  equipped  two  companies  in  this 
way,  and  sent  them  to  headquarters.  The  weather  was  extremely 
hot,  and  the  light  costume  pleased  all  wearers.  Colonel  Boquet 
wrote :  "  The  dress  takes  very  well  here,  and,  thank  God,  we  see 


&T.  26.]  ROUTE  OVER  THE  MOUNTAINS.  271 

nothing  but  shirts  and  blankets."  This  was  the  origin  of  the  Indian- 
like  dress  of  the  American  riflemen. 

From  Fort  Cumberland  stretched  the  open  road  through  the  wil 
derness  to  the  Monongahela,  widened  by  Braddock  in  '55,  at  a  great 
expense  of  toil  and  money,,  and  along  that  road  Washington  ex 
pected  soon  to  march.  It  was  broad  enough  for  artillery  and  wag 
ons,  and  it  required  but  slight  repairs  to  put  it  in  good  condition. 
But  General  Forbes,  then  ill  at  Carlisle,  influenced  by  Pennsylvania 
land-speculators  and  Indian  traffickers  of  that  province,  had  decided 
to  open  a  new  road  along  the  track  of  the  northern  traders,  from 
Raystown  to  Fort  Duquesne.  This  decision  was  communicated  to 
Washington,  late  in  July,  by  Colonel  Boquet,  who  requested  his 
opinion  upon  the  subject.  Washington  was  amazed  and  distressed. 
Already  he  had  been  compelled  to  cast  his  opinion  in  the  way  of  a 
proposed  expedition,  which  he  knew  would  be  disastrous.  The 
French  and  Indians  were  continually  harassing  the  almost  idle 
camps,  and  Forbes  had  proposed  to  send  a  strong  detachment  over 
the  mountains,  to  keep  the  enemy  employed  in  their  own  country 
while  the  invading  army  should  move  on.  Concerning  this,  Boquet 
asked  Washington's  opinion.  He  modestly  replied :  "  Such  an  en 
terprise,  sir,  at  this  juncture,  when  we  may  suppose  the  enemy  have 
collected,  or  are  collecting,  their  whole  force  at  Fort  Duquesne, 
would  require  a  formidable  detachment,  the  supplying  of  which 
with  provisions  would  be  too  difficult  and  cumbersome  to  be  effected 
undiscovered,  as  the  enemy's  parties  are  continually  watching  our 
motions.  It  is  more  than  likely,  therefore,  that  the  enterprise  would 
terminate  in  a  miscarriage,  if  not  in  the  destruction  of  the  party.  I 
should  think  it  more  eligible  to  defer  such  an  attempt,  until  the 
army  approaches  more  nearly  to  the  enemy."  These  and  other 
suggestions  prevailed,  and  the  ill-judged  enterprise  was  abandoned. 

Washington's  opinion  was  equally  decisive  against  the  proposed 
new  road.  In  reply  to  Colonel  Boquet,  he  wrote,  like  a  true  sol 
dier,  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  July :  "  I  shall  most  cheerfully  work  on 
any  road,  pursue  any  route,  or  enter  upon  any  service,  that  the  gen 
eral  or  yourself  may  think  me  usefully  employed  in,  or  qualified  for, 


WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1753. 

and  shall  never  have  a  will  of  my  own,  when  a  duty  is  required  of 
me.  But  since  you  desire  me  to  speak  my  sentiments  freely,"  he 
added,  "  permit  me  to  observe,  that  after  having  conversed  with  all 
the  guides,  and  having  been  informed  by  others,  who  have  a  knowl 
edge  of  the  country,  I  am  convinced  that  a  road,  to  be  compared 
with  General  Braddock's,  or,  indeed,  that  will  be  fit  for  transporta 
tion  even  by  pack-horses,  can  not  be  made.  I  have  no  predilection 
for  the  route  you  have  in  contemplation  for  me,  not  because  diffi 
culties  appear  therein,  but  because  I  doubt  whether  satisfaction  can 
be  given  in  the  execution  of  the  plan.  I  know  not  what  reports 
you  may  have  received  from  your  reconnoitring  parties ;  but  I  have 
been  uniformly  told,  that,  if  you  expect  a  tolerable  road  by  Rays- 
town,  you  will  be  disappointed,  for  no  movement  can  be  made  in 
that  way,  without  destroying  our  horses."  To  this,  Colonel  Boquet, 
who  had  been  told  that  the  Virginians  were  selfish  in  wishing  to 
prevent  a  new  route  being  opened  to  the  Indian  country,  replied : 
"  Nothing  can  exceed  your  generous  disposition  for  the  service.  I 
see,  with  the  utmost  satisfaction,  that  you  are  above  the  influences 
of  prejudice,  and  ready  to  go  heartily  where  reason  and  judgment 
shall  direct.  I  wish  seriously  that  we  may  all  entertain  one  and 
the  same  opinion;  therefore  I  desire  to  have  an  interview  with  you 
at  the  houses  built  half-way  between  our  camps." 

The  proposed  interview  took  place  on  the  first  of  August.  Wash 
ington  found  Boquet  strongly  in  favor  of  the  new  road.  They  dis 
cussed  the  matter  long  and  pleasantly,  but  could  not  agree.  On 
his  return  to  camp  the  next  day,  Washington  addressed  a  letter  to 
Boquet,  to  be  laid  before  General  Forbes,  in  which  he  restated  his 
objections  to  the  new  road.  He  set  forth  that  when  the  Virginians 
and  Pennsylvania!!*  opened  a  trade  with  the  Indians  on  the  Ohio, 
many  years  before,  they  offered  a  reward  for  information  concern 
ing  the  best  route  for  a  road  over  the  mountains.  Stimulated  by 
this,  some  of  the  most  intelligent  and  experienced  Indian  hunters 
indicated  routes,  and  in  1753  the  Ohio  Company  built  a  road  upon 
the  line  of  the  most  eligible  one.  The  little  army  under  Washing 
ton  in  1754  repaired  it,  and  it  was  widened  and  completed  to  within 


^ET.  26.]  WASHINGTON'S  FOREBODINGS.  273 

six  miles  of  Fort  Duquesne,  by  Braddock,  in  1755.  He  showed  that 
forage  was  more  plentiful  along  Braddock's  road  than  on  the  pro 
posed  route,  pointed  out  many  other  advantages  of  the  former  over 
the  latter,  and  urged,  as  a  principal  reason  in  favor  of  his  own  opin 
ion,  that  the  season  was  too  far  advanced  to  allow  a  waste  of  time 
in  making  a  new  road. 

Washington  was  equally  opposed  to  a  scheme  which  had  been 
suggested  of  dividing  the  army  and  marching  by  the  two  different 
routes.  Having  been  requested  to  give  his  opinion,  also,  as  to  the 
best  mode  of  advancing  by  deposites  of  provisions  and  stores,  he 
recommended  an  order  of  march  by  Braddock's  road,  which,  he  esti 
mated,  would  bring  the  army  before  Fort  Duquesne  in  thirty-four 
days,  with  a  supply  of  provisions  for  eighty-six  days.  He  expressed 
the  confident  opinion  that  the  campaign  might  be  effected  by  the 
middle  of  October. 

Perceiving  the  strong  bias  of  Colonel  Boquet  in  favor  of  Forbes's 
plans,  Washington  scarcely  hoped  that  his  opinions  would  be  re 
ceived  favorably.  Conscious  that  his  views  were  correct,  and  that 
the  regular  officers  were  incompetent  to  engage  properly  in  Indian 
warfare,  he  was  exceedingly  anxious.  To  Major  Halket,  the  aid-de 
camp  of  General  Forbes,  he  thus  wrote,  on  the  same  day  when  he 
prepared  his  long  letter  to  Boquet,  for  the  general:  "I  am  just  re 
turned  from  a  conference  with  Colonel  Boquet.  I  find  him  fixed, 
I  think  I  may  say  unalterably  fixed,  to  lead  you  a  new  way  to  the 
Ohio,  through  a  road,  every  inch  of  which  is  to  be  cut  at  this  ad 
vanced  season,  when  we  have  scarce  time  left  to  tread  the  beaten 
track,  universally  confessed  to  be  the  best  passage  through  the 
mountains.  If  Colonel  Boquet  succeeds  in  this  point  with  the  gen 
eral,  all  is  lost, — all  is  lost  indeed — our  enterprise  will  be  ruined, 
and  we  shall  be  stopped  at  the  Laurel  hill  this  winter ;  but  not  to 
gather  laurels^  except  of  the  kind  that  covers  the  mountains.  The 
southern  Indians  will  turn  against  us,*  and  these  colonies  will  be 

*  The  Catawbas  had  already  behaved  very  badly.  Early  in  July,  Colonel  Boquet  wrote  to 
Washington :  "  The  Catawbas,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Johnny,  are  gone  to  Winchester. 
They  have  behaved  in  the  most  shameful  manner,  and  run  away  like  a  parcel  of  thieves,  rather  than 
warriors.  They  have  never  killed  even  a  deer,  and  there  is  the  strongest  reason  to  suspect  that  the 

18 


274  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

desolated  by  such  an  accession  to  the  enemy's  strength.  These 
must  be  the  consequences  of  a  miscarriage ;  and  a  miscarriage  is 
the  almost  necessary  consequence  of  an  attempt  to  march  the  army 
by  this  new  route.  I  have  given  my  reasons  at  large,  to  Colonel 
Boquet.  He  desired  that  I  would  do  so,  that  he  might  forward 
them  to  the  general.  Should  this  happen,  you  will  be  able  to 
judge  of  their  wTeight." 

The  remonstrances  and  arguments  of  Washington  were  unavail 
ing.  The  officers  of  the  regular  army  had  read  the  despatches  of 
Braddock,  wherein  he  had  described  his  road  as  "  lying  across  mount 
ains  and  rocks  of  an  excessive  height,  vastly  steep,  and  divided  by 
torrents  and  rivers ;"  and  their  fears  were  enhanced  by  the  tales  of 
interested  Pennsylvania  traders,  who  described  the  new  route  as  a 
paradise,  in  comparison  with  the  other.  At  length,  late  in  August, 
the  new  route  was  adopted,  and  sixteen  hundred  men  were  imme 
diately  set  to  work  upon  it,  in  advance  of  Eaystown.  Washington 
was  mortified,  and  the  Virginia  assembly  resolved  to  recall  their 
troops,  and  place  them  on  their  own  frontier.  These  resolves  were 
revoked  when  intelligence  came  that  the  expedition  was  actually  in 
progress,  for  its  failure  would  be  ascribed,  and  perhaps  justly,  to 
such  withdrawal  of  the  Virginia  regiments.  It  was  well  they  were 
not  withdrawn,  for  the  final  success  of  the  expedition  was  achieved 
by  those  very  troops. 

Washington  was  yet  in  camp  at  Fort  Cumberland,  with  sickly  and 
dispirited  troops,  on  the  first  of  September,  and  was  as  impatient  as 
a  hound  in  the  leasb.  "  That  appearance  of  glory,"  he  wrote  to 
Speaker  Robinson,  "  which  we  had  once  in  view,  that  hope,  that 
laudable  ambition  of  serving  our  country,  and  meriting  its  applause, 
are  now  no  more ;  all  is  dwindled  into  ease,  sloth,  and  fatal  inac- 


scalp,  which  they  pretend  to  have  taken,  was  an  old  one.  I  think  it  very  necessary  to  send  a  message  to 
their  nation,  to  complain  of  their  conduct,  and  know  at  once  if  they  are  friends  or  enemies."  Washing 
ton  had  urged  the  necessity  of  keeping  the  Indians  employed,  by  sending  them  out  in  small  parties,  to 
annoy  similar  small  parties  of  the  hostile  savages.  He  also  recommended  their  going  out  alone,  to 
fight  in  their  own  way,  but  Colonel  Boquet  insisted  upon  sending  large  numbers  of  white  men  with 
them.  These,  Washington  represented  to  be  encumbrances  to  the  Indians,  caused  disasters,  and 
discouraged  them.  But  the  English  officers  must  have  lighting  done  according  to  precedent,  or  not 
at  all,  and  lost  instead  of  winning. 


/Ex.  26.]  REASONS  FOR  IMPATIENCE.  275 

tivity.  In  a  word,  all  is  lost,  if  the  ways  of  men  in  power,  like  cer 
tain  ways  of  Providence,  are  not  inscrutable.  But  we,  who  view 
the  actions  of  great  men  at  a  distance,  can  only  form  conjectures 
agreeably  to  a  limited  perception ;  and,  being  ignorant  of  the  com 
prehensive  schemes,  which  may  be  in  contemplation,  might  mistake 
egregiously  in  judging  of  things  from  appearances,  or  by  the  lump. 
Yet  every  fool  will  have  his  notions — will  prattle  and  talk  away; 
and  why  may  not  I  ?  We  seem  then,  in  my  opinion,  to  act  under 
the  guidance  of  an  evil  genius.  The  conduct  of  our  leaders,  if  not 
actuated  by  superior  orders,  is  tempered  with  something,  I  do  not 
care  to  give  a  name  to.  Nothing  now,  but  a  miracle,  can  bring  the 
campaign  to  a  happy  issue." 

Washington  had  ample  excuses  for  impatience.  A  desire  to  serve 
his  country  faithfully — a  laudable  thirst  for  military  renown  —  the 
calls  of  duty  to  civil  station,  and  the  powerful  attractions  of  affection 
toward  one  who  had  promised  to  become  his  wife  —  all  conspired 
to  make  him  anxious  to  carry  on  vigorously,  and  finish  speedily, 
the  campaign  in  which  he  was  engaged. 

Intelligence  of  the  victory  at  Louisburg  had  reached  the  camp 
toward  the  close  of  July,  and  produced  great  rejoicings.  Washing 
ton  was  desirous  of  striking  a  blow  at  the  South,  against  the  French 
dominion,  equally  brilliant ;  and  had  his  counsels  prevailed  at  the 
beginning,  or  even  at  that  time,  Fort  Duquesne  might  have  been 
an  English  possession  before  the  summer  heats  had  departed,  or  at 
least  by  the  autumnal  equinox.  But  now,  when  that  strong  army 
should  have  been  wearing  the  laurels  of  military  triumph  beyond 
the  mountains,  and  chanting  songs  of  victory  on  the  banks  of  the 
Ohio,  it  presented  the  humiliating  spectacle  of  a  huge  company  of 
road-builders,  not  yet  arrived  at  the  eastern  base  of  the  Alleghanies. 

Official  station  in  civil  life  awaited  Washington's  return  from  the 
camp,  and  this  made  him  impatient.  Having  resolved  to  leave  the 
army  at  the  close  of  the  present  campaign,  he  became  a  candidate 
for  the  house  of  burgesses,  to  represent  Frederick  county.  The 
election  came  on  at  the  close  of  July,  and  his  friends  urged  him  to 
be  at  Winchester  on  the  occasion.  But  no  force  of  personal  consid- 


276  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

eration  could  draw  him  from  his  post  of  duty,  and  the  election  was 
carried  through  without  his  presence.  It  was  then  customary  for 
the  candidate  to  be  at  the  polls  during  the  voting.  His  friend, 
Colonel  Wood,  was  his  proxy  on  the  occasion,  and  he  was  chosen 
by  a  large  majority  over  all  of  his  competitors.  Colonel  Wood  was 
carried  about  the  town  in  the  midst  of  general  applause  and  loud 
huzzas  for  Colonel  Washington.  This  election  was  significant,  for 
it  uttered  the  praises  of  a  people  in  the  midst  of  whom  he  had  been 
in  military  command  in  the  worst  of  times.  It  was  a  noble  com 
ment  upon  his  faithfulness.  "  That  poll,"  says  Sparks,  "  cost  the 
new  burgess  thirty-nine  pounds  and  six  shillings.  Among  the  items 
of  charge,  which  have  been  preserved,  are  a  hogshead  and  a  barrel 
of  punch,  thirty-five  gallons  of  wine,  forty-three  gallons  of  strong 
beer,  cider,  and  dinner  for  his  friends."* 

Another,  and  not  the  least  powerful  of  the  causes  of  Washington's 
impatience  at  that  time,  was  the  love  lie  bore  for  one  of  the  best 
of  Virginia's  daughters.  The  story  of  that  love  is  simple,  yet  full 
of  romance.  The  passion  wras  awakened  while,  in  the  previous 
spring,  Colonel  Washington  was  on  the  journey  to  Williamsburg 
from  his  camp  at  Winchester,  at  the  request  of  Sir  John  St.  Clair,  to 
lay  before  the  civil  authorities  the  pressing  needs  of  his  regiment, 
preparatory  to  the  expedition  on  which  he  was  now  engaged.  No 
better  words  can  paint  the  picture  of  that  love  and  brief  courtship 
than  those  employed,  in  after-years,  by  a  grandson  of  the  lady.')' 
"It  was  in  IV 58,"  he  says,  "that  Washington,  attired  in  a  military 
undress,  and  attended  by  a  body-servant,  tall  and  mititaire  as  his 
chief,  was  crossing  Williams's  ferry  over  the  Pamunkey  river,  a 
branch  of  the  York  river.  On  the  boat  touching  the  southern,  or 
New  Kent  side,  the  soldier's  progress  was  arrested  by  one  of  those 
personages  who  give  the  beau-ideal  of  the  Virginia  gentleman,  of 
the  old  regime,  the  very  soul  of  kindness  and  hospitality.  It  was  in 
vain  the  soldier  pleaded  the  urgency  of  his  presence  at  Williams- 

*  Writings  of  Washington  (note),  ii.,  297. 

t  George  Washington  Parke  Custis.  Mr.  Custis,  on  the  death  of  his  father,  was  adopted  as  a 
son  by  Washington.  He  yet  (1857)  lives  at  Arlington  House,  near  the  banks  of  the  Potomac,  oppo 
site  Washington  city.  He  is  the  sole  surviving  executor  of  the  will  of  Washington. 


^Er.  26.]  WASHINGTON  AND  MRS.  CUSTIS.  i>77 

burg.  Mr.  Chamberlayne,  on  whose  domain  the  militaire  had  just 
landed,  would  hear  of  no  excuse.  Colonel  Washington  was  a  name 
and  character  so  dear  to  all  Virginians,  that  his  passing  by  one  of 
the  castles  of  the  Old  Dominion,  without  calling  and  partaking  of 
the  hospitalities  of  the  host,  was  out  of  the  question.  The  colonel, 
however,  did  not  surrender  at  discretion,  but  stoutly  maintained  his 
ground  till  Chamberlayne,  bringing  up  his  reserve,  in  the  intimation 
that  he  would  introduce  his  friend  to  a  young  and  charming  widow, 
then  beneath  his  roof,  the  soldier  capitulated,  on  condition  that  he 
should  dine  —  only  dine  —  and  then,  by  pressing  his  charger  and 
borrowing  of  the  night,  he  would  reach  Williamsburg  before  his  ex 
cellency  could  shake  off  his  morning  slumbers.  Orders  were  accord 
ingly  issued  to  Bishop,  the  colonel's  body-servant  and  faithful  fol 
lower,  who,  together  with  the  fine  English  charger,  had  been  be 
queathed  by  the  dying  Braddock  to  Major  Washington,  on  the 
famed  and  fated  field  of  Monongahela.  Bishop,  bred  in  the  school 
of  European  discipline,  raised  his  hand  to  his  cap,  as  much  as  to 
say,  '  Your  orders  shall  be  obeyed.' 

"  The  colonel  now  proceeded  to  the  mansion,  and  was  introduced 
to  various  guests  (for  when  was  a  Virginia  domicil  of  the  olden  time 
without  guests  ?)  and,  above  all,  to  the  charming  widow.  Tradition 
relates  that  they  were  mutually  pleased,  on  this,  their  first  inter 
view  ;  nor  is  it  remarkable.  They  were  of  an  age  when  impressions 
were  strongest.  The  lady  was  fair  to  behold,  of  fascinating  manners, 
and  splendidly  endowed  with  worldly  benefits.  The  hero  was  fresh 
from  his  early  fields,  redolent  of  fame,  and  with  a  form  on  which 

'Every  god  did  seem  to  set  his  seal, 
To  give  the  world  assurance  of  a  man.' 

"  The  morning  passed  pleasantly  away ;  evening  came,  with  Bish 
op,  true  to  his  orders  and  firm  at  his  post,  holding  the  favorite 
charger  with  one  hand,  while  the  other  was  waiting  to  offer  the 
ready  stirrup.  The  sun  sunk  in  the  horizon,  and  yet  the  colonel 
appeared  not.  '  Strange,  very  strange,'  thought  Bishop  ;  surely  he 
was  not  wont  to  be  a  single  moment  behind  his  appointments,  for 
he  was  the  most  punctual  of  men. 


278  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

"  Meantime,  the  host  enjoyed  the  scene  of  the  veteran  at  the 
gate,  while  the  colonel  was  so  agreeably  employed  in  the  parlor ; 
and  proclaiming  that  no  visiter  ever  left  his  home  at  sunset,  his 
military  guest  was,  without  much  difficulty,  persuaded  to  order 
Bishop  to  put  up  the  horses  for  the  night.  The  sun  rode  high  in 
the  heavens  the  ensuing  day,  when  the  enamored  soldier  pressed 
with  his  spurs  his  charger's  side,  and  speeded  on  his  way  to  the  seat 
of  government,  where,  having  despatched  his  public  business,  he 
retraced  his  steps,  and,  at  the  White  House,  the  engagement  took 
place,  with  preparations  for  marriage." 

The  "  charming  widow "  was  Martha  Custis,  daughter  of  John 
Dandridge,  whose  husband,  John  Parke  Custis,  had  been  dead  about 
three  years.  Pie  had  left  her  with  two  young  children,  and  a  very 
large  fortune  in  lands  and  money.  Her  residence,  "  the  White 
House,"  was  in  New  Kent  county,  not  far  from  Williamsburg ;  and 
there,  before  the  soldier  returned  to  his  camp,  he  and  the  widow 
were  betrothed,  and  they  agreed  to  marry  at  the  close  of  the  cam 
paign.  "And  much,"  continues  Mr.  Custis,  "hath  the  biographer 
heard  of  that  marriage,  from  the  gray-haired  domestics  who  waited 
at  the  board  where  love  made  the  feast  and  Washington  the  guest. 
6  And  so  you  remember,'  I  said  to  old  Cully,  my  grandmother's  ser 
vant,  when  in  his  hundredth  year — '  and  so  you  remember  when 
Colonel  Washington  came  a-courting  your  young  mistress?' — 'Ay, 
master,  that  I  do,'  said  Cully.  '  Great  times,  sir,  great  times  —  shall 
never  see  the  like  again.'  —  'And  Washington  looked  something 
like  a  man,  a  proper  man,  hey,  Cully  ?' — '  Never  seed  the  like,  sir — 
never  the  like  of  him,  though  I  have  seen  many  in  my  day  —  so  tall, 
so  straight,  and  then  he  sat  on  a  horse  and  rode  with  such  an  air ! 
Ah,  sir,  he  was  like  no  one  else !  Many  of  the  grandest  gentlemen, 
in  the  gold  lace,  were  at  the  wredding ;  but  none  looked  like  the 
man  himself "  All  through  the  tedious  and  perilous  campaign 
of  that  year,  which  continued  until  the  late  autumnal  snow^s  had 
fallen,  Washington  and  his  affianced  were  in  constant  epistolary 
correspondence. 

*  National  Portrait  Gallery  of  Distinguished  Americans,  vol.  i. 


JEx.  26.]  WASHINGTON  WITH  GENERAL  FORBES.  279 

On  the  first  of  September,  as  we  have  observed,  Washington  was 
yet  at  Fort  Cumberland.  His  troops  had  been  idle  most  of  the 
summer.  A  small  detachment,  under  Colonel  Mercer,  had  opened 
a  road  from  his  camp  to  Raystown,  and  he  had  sent  out  scouts  from 
time  to  time,  to  reconnoitre  the  enemy.  These  now  brought  intelli 
gence  which  increased  his  impatience.  They  had  obtained  positive 
information  that  the  garrison  of  Fort  Duquesne  did  not  contain 
more  than  eight  hundred  men,  Indians  included,  at  the  middle  of 
August,  the  time  when  the  expedition,  six  thousand  strong,  might 
have  been  west  of  the  mountains.  "  See,"  he  wrote  to  Speaker  Rob 
inson,  "  how  our  time  has  been  misspent.  Behold  how  the  golden 
opportunity  has  been  lost,  perhaps  never  more  to  be  regained ! 
How  is  it  to  be  accounted  for  ?  Can  General  Forbes  have  orders 
for  this  ?  Impossible.  Will,  then,  our  injured  country  pass  by  such 
abuses  ?  I  hope  not.  Rather  let  a  full  representation  of  the  matter 
go  to  his  majesty.  Let  him  know  how  grossly  his  glory  and  interest, 
and  the  public  money,  have  been  prostituted." 

A  few  days  after  this  letter  was  written,  General  Forbes,  with  the 
powers  of  life  fast  ebbing,  arrived  in  a  litter  at  Raystown,  and  took 
command  of  the  army.*  The  new  road  was  then  completed  to 
Loyal  Hanna,  a  distance  of  forty-five  miles,  where  Colonel  Boquet, 
with  the  advanced  party  of  twenty-five  hundred  men,  was  construct 
ing  a  fort  and  place  of  deposite  for  stores.  On  his  arrival  at  Rays- 
town,  General  Forbes  ordered  Washington  to  join  him  with  his 
troops.  The  order  was  obeyed  with  alacrity,  and  Washington  was 
highly  gratified  by  the  marked  deference  which  the  general  paid  to 
his  opinions  concerning  the  future  operations  of  the  army.  Although 
he  had  strenuously  opposed  the  scheme  of  making  a  new  road,  yet, 
it  having  been  adopted,  Washington  now  used  every  exertion  to 
carry  the  work  forward.  He  was  consulted  on  all  occasions,  attended 

*  It  is  related  that  while  General  Forbes  was  on  his  way  from  Carlisle  to  Raystown,  borne  in  a 
close  litter,  an  embassy  from  unfriendly  Indians  came  to  the  army.  They  were  greatly  puzzled 
when  they  perceived  that  all  commands  came  from  that  litter,  and  eagerly  inquired  about  it.  Know 
ing  that  the  Indians  would  despise  the  English  if  they  knew  that  their  general  was  sick,  the  British 
officers  told  them  that  in  that  litter  was  their  great  commander,  a  man  so  fierce  and  strong,  that  lie 
found  it  necessary  to  keep  himself  bound,  hand  and  foot,  and  lie  still  until  he  came  to  the  enemy's 
country,  lest  he  should  do  the  embassadors,  or  even  his  own  men,  much  mischief.  The  alarmed 
savages  soon  fled  in  terror  to  the  mountains,  glad  to  escape  from  the  presence  of  such  a  warrior. 


280  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

all  councils  of  officers,  and,  at  the  request  of  the  general,  he  drew 
up  a  line  of  march  and  order  of  battle,  by  which  the  army  might 
advance  with  facility  and  safety  through  the  woods.  Remembering 
the  fate  of  Braddock,  Forbes  was  nowr  willing  to  yield  his  opinions 
and  prejudices  to  the  experience  and  judgment  of  the  young  pro 
vincial  whos:.;  skill  and  powers  were  so  signally  displayed  on  the 
field  of  Monongahela. 

It  was  now  the  middle  of  September,  and  the  main  army  was 
about  to  move  forward,  when  intelligence  of  serious  disaster  reached 
the  camp.  Colonel  Boquet,  without  the  knowledge  of  his  superior, 
had  sent  forward  Major  Grant,  of  Montgomery's  battalion,  with 
eight  hundred  Highlanders,  and  a  part  of  Washington's  regiment 
under  Major  Lewis,  to  reconnoitre  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Duquesne, 
and  ascertain  the  strength  and  position  of  the  enemy.  Grant,  eager 
for  personal  distinction,  executed  his  orders,  and  acted  with  inex 
cusable  foolhardiness  by  inviting  an  attack.  He  reached  a  hill  near 
the  fort,  in  the  night,  and  appeared  to  take  special  pains  to  reveal 
his  presence.  A  party  of  observation  burnt  a  log-house  at  a  short 
distance  from  the  fort-  and  the  next  morning,  having  detached 
Major  Lewis,  with  a  baggage-guard,  two  miles  in  his  rear,  he  sent 
an  engineer,  with  a  covering  party,  within  full  view  of  the  fort,  to 
draw  a  plan  of  the  works.  Not  content  with  this  bravado,  he  or 
dered  the  reveille  to  be  beaten  in  several  places.  Yet,  with  all  this 
parade,  he  elicited  no  attention,  apparently.  Not  a  gun  was  fired, 
and  Grant  mistook  this  silence  for  fear.  His  vain-glory  proved  his 
ruin.  While  in  fancied  security,  and  off  his  guard,  the  enemy  made 
a  sortie  and  fell  upon  the  Britons,  and  at  the  same  time  clouds  of 
arrows,  from  ambushed  Indian  warriors,  pierced  their  flanks.  For  a 
time  the  Highlanders  fought  bravely,  but  the  terrible  yells  of  the 
savages,  and  their  sharp  arrows,  at  length  produced  confusion  and  a 
fearful  panic. 

At  the  first  sound  of  battle,  Major  Lewis  left  Captain  Bullitt,  with 
fifty  Virginians,  in  charge  of  the  baggage,  and  with  the  remainder 
of  his  command  he  pressed  forward  to  the  relief  of  Grant,  It  was 
too  late.  With  gleaming  knives  and  heavy  tomahawks,  the  Indians 


JE-r.  2.6.]  BRAVERY  OF  THE  VIRGINIANS.  281 

rushed  from  the  thickets  and  fell  >  upon  the  invaders  with  terrible 
effect.  Hand  to  hand  they  fought,  when,  overpowered  by  numbers, 
Lewis  and  Grant  saved  their  lives  by  surrendering  to  a  French  offi 
cer.  At  that  moment  the  whole  detachment  fled  in  dismay,  pursued 
by  the  exasperated  savages. 

The  fugitives  were  rallied  by  Captain  Bullitt,  who,  after  sending 
back  the  most  valuable  baggage  with  the  strongest  horses,  made  a 
barricade  of  the  baggage-wagons.  Behind  these  he  placed  his  men 
and  took  a  forlorn  stand.  It  was  their  only  chance  for  safety,  for 
the  savages  were  rushing  wildly  on.  A  volley  from  behind  the 
wagons  checked  the  fierce  current  for  a  moment,  but,  gathering 
strength  by  increment  of  numbers,  it  pressed  forward  more  terrible 
than  before.  At  that  perilous  juncture,  Bullitt,  with  quick  thought 
and  action,  made  a  signal  of  capitulation,  and  advanced  as  if  to  sur 
render.  When  within  twenty-five  feet  of  the  enemy,  he  gave  a 
signal,  and  his  men  all  raised  their  pieces  and  poured  a  destructive 
shower  of  bullets  upon  the  foe.  The  Indians  fled  in  dismay ;  and 
before  they  recovered  from  the  shock,  Bullitt  and  his  men  had  gath 
ered  up  their  wounded,  and,  with  the  scattered  fugitives,  retreated 
with  speed  beyond  the  bounds  of  danger.  In  fragments  the  broken 
detachment  came  back  to  Boquet's  camp,  having  left  upon  the  battle 
field,  or  in  the  hands  of  captors,  twenty-one  officers  and  two  hundred 
and  seventy-three  privates.  Of  the  detachment  from  Washington's 
regiment,  six  officers  and  sixty  privates  were  lost.  Majors  Grant 
and  Lewis  were  taken  to  Montreal  as  prisoners. 

This  "  irruption  into  the  enemy's  country,"  which  Washington  had 
uniformly  opposed  as  dangerous,  resulted  precisely  as  he  had  pre 
dicted.  And  yet  it  was  the  means  of  exalting  the  character  of  his 
regiment,  and  increasing  the  faith  of  the  regulars  in  his  mode  of 
training,  for  the  gallantry  displayed  by  Captain  Bullitt  and  his  men 
elicited  the  greatest  admiration.  General  Forbes  publicly  compli 
mented  Washington  on  the  good  conduct  of  his  troops ;  and  soon 
afterward  Bullitt  was  rewarded  with  a  major's  commission. 

Slowly  the  main  army  and  the  artillery  now  moved  along  the 
new  but  wretched  road,  and  reached  Loyal  Hanna  on  the  fifth  of 


282  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

November.  The  hills  were  hoary  with  snow,  and  frost  was  binding 
the  waters  in  the  valleys.  The  soldiers  were  scantily  clothed  and 
fed,  yet  knew  that  immense  toil  and  exposure  would  be  required  of 
them,  because  fifty  miles  of  the  dreary  wilderness  was  still  before 
them,  and  scarcely  a  furlong  of  the  road  over  which  they  were  to 
travel  was  constructed.  No  wonder  that  the  troops  were  dispirited, 
or  that  the  ofhcers  had  gloomy  forebodings. 

Placing  great  reliance  upon  Colonel  Washington's  judgment,  Gen 
eral  Forbes  appeared  desirous  of  doing  all  in  his  power  to  please 
him.  Indeed,  like  young  Howe  in  the  North,  Washington  was  "  the 
soul  of  the  army"  in  the  West.  Anxious  to  make  his  experience  of 
border  warfare  profitable  to  his  country,  he  had,  toward  the  close  of 
July,  requested  Colonel  Boquet  to  use  his  influence  with  the  general 
to  get  himself  and  his  regiment  included  in  the  advanced  division. 
"  If  any  argument  is  needed  to  obtain  this  favor,"  he  said,  "  I  hope 
without  vanity  I  may  be  allowed  to  say,  that,  from  long  intimacy 
with  the  woods  and  frequent  scouting  in  them,  my  men  are  at  least 
as  well  acquainted  with  all  the  passes  and  difficulties  as  any  troops 
that  will  be  employed."  At  Loyal  Hanna  this  request  was  gladly 
complied  with,  and  Washington  was  placed  at  the  head  of  a  division 
of  one  thousand  provincials,  who  were  to  move  in  front  of  the  main 
army  and  act  as  pioneers,  scouts,  and  patrols,  to  prevent  surprises, 
and  to  cast  up  entrenchments  wherever  they  appeared  necessary  as 
a  security  to  the  deposites  of  provisions.  This  corps  constituted  a 
brigade,  and  Washington  had  the  temporary  rank  of  a  brigadier- 
general. 

Sick,  wearied,  and  discouraged,  the  feeble  commander-in-chief 
called  a  council  of  war,  and  it  was  resolved  not  to  proceed  any  far 
ther  on  account  of  the  lateness  of  the  season,  the  difficulties  of  the 
way,  and  a  rumored  reinforcement  of  the  garrison  at  Fort  Duquesne. 
The  prediction  of  Washington,  in  August,  that  "  we  shall  be  stopped 
at  the  Laurel  hill  this  winter,"  appeared  about  to  be  verified,  when  a 
scout  brought  in  three  prisoners.  From  these  it  was  ascertained  that 
the  garrison  at  Duquesne  was  very  weak,  their  provisions  almost 
exhausted,  and  that  the  Indians,  dispirited  by  the  fall  of  Frontenac, 


JET.  26.]  WASHINGTON  AT  FORT  DUQUESNE.  283 

and  the  approach  of  the  British,  were  deserting  the  French  in  great 
numbers.  This  intelligence  revived  the  hopes  of  Forbes,  and,  to  the 
great  joy  of  Washington  and  his  men,  he  issued  orders  for  the  army 
to  move  on. 

Celerity  of  movement  was  important,  and,  without  tents  or  heavy 
baggage,  and  with  a  train  of  light  artillery,  they  advanced  rapidly. 
Washington  led  the  van,  and  detached  Colonel  Armstrong  with  a 
numerous  party  to  keep  in  advance  as  a  corps  of  observation.  The 
provincials,  and  especially  the  Virginians,  worked  cheerfully  by  the 
side  of  their  beloved  leader.  On  the  fifteenth  of  November,  Wash 
ington  was  at  Chestnut  Ridge ;  on  the  seventeenth  he  was  at  Bush 
Run,  and  the  next  day  he  had  opened  the  road  to  Armstrong's 
camp,  three  miles  in  advance.  "  All  the  men,"  he  wrote  to  his  gen 
eral,  "  are  in  fine  spirits  and  anxious  to  go  on,"  notwithstanding  all 
along  their  line  of  march,  as  they  approached  Fort  Duquesne,  the 
bones  of  those  who  were  slaughtered  at  Braddock's  defeat  were 
visible. 

Anxious  to  know  the  condition  of  the  fort,  General  Forbes  now 
offered  a  reward  of  forty  pounds  to  any  man  who  would  capture  a 
hostile  Indian.  This  was  soon  accomplished  by  a  sergeant  of  the 
North  Carolina  militia ;  and  that  prisoner  informed  the  general  that 
the  Indians,  terror-stricken  at  the  approach  of  the  British,  had  fled 
in  a  body  from  Fort  Duquesne,  declaring  that  the  Great  Spirit  had 
evidently  withdrawn  his  protection  from  the  French.  He  further 
affirmed  that  the  French,  deprived  of  expected  supplies  from  Fron- 
tenac,  disheartened  by  the  victory  of  Bradstreet  at  that  place,  and 
alarmed  at  the  approach  of  the  British,  had  just  abandoned  and  set 
fire  to  the  fort,  and  fled  down  the  Ohio  in  their  boats.  Encouraged 
by  this  information,  Washington  and  his  party  pushed  forward,  and 
on  the  following  day,  the  twenty-fifth  of  November,  he  unfurled  the 
British  flag  over  the  still  smoking  ruins  of  that  formidable  fortress 
in  the  wilderness,  from  which,  for  three  years,  had  issued  the  terri 
ble  frontier  scourges.  Three  days  afterward  he  had  the  pleasure  of 
writing  to  Governor  Fauquier:  "The  enemy,  after  letting  us  get 
within  a  day's  march  of  the  place,  burned  the  fort,  and  ran  away 


284  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1758. 

by  the  light  of  it,  at  night,  going  down  the  Ohio  by  water,  to  the 
number  of  about  five  hundred,  according  to  our  best  information."* 

After  the  first  burst  of  joy  at  this  consummation  of  their  hopes 
and  toils,  the  whole  army,  officers  and  privates,  engaged  in  the  pious 
work  of  burying  the  remains  of  those  who  were  slain  at  the  defeats 
of  Braddock  and  Grant.  When  this  duty  was  performed,  the  fort 
was  repaired.  Then,  with  waving  banners  and  peals  of  artillery,  the 
event  was  celebrated,  and  the  post  was  named  Fort  Pitt,  in  honor  of 
the  illustrious  statesman  whose  wise  and  liberal  measures,  in  making 
provisions  for  this  campaign,  had  been  instrumental  in  greatly  en 
hancing  the  glory  and  puissance  of  the  British  realm.  Upon  that 
spot,  the  large  and  growing  city  of  Pittsburgh  now  stands,  a  noble 
monument  to  the  memory  of  England's  greatest  prime  minister. 

The  Indians,  as  usual,  paid  their  devotions  to  the  rising  sun— 
bowed  submissively  to  the  conquering  power.  Treaties  were  speed 
ily  concluded  with  all  the  tribes  between  the  Ohio  and  the  lakes, 
and  the  French  dominion  in  the  West  now  became  a  part  of  the 
history  of  the  past.  All  of  this  might  have  been  accomplished  long 
before,  if  the  opinions  of  Washington  could  have  controlled  the 
councils  of  his  province. 

Ever  mindful  of  the  comfort  of  his  troops,  it  was  writh  great  re 
luctance  that  Washington  left  a  portion  of  his  command  to  garrison 
Fort  Pitt,  in  obedience  to  the  orders  of  General  Forbes.  At  Loyal 

*  When  General  Forbes  was  on  the  eve  of  starting  for  Fort  Duquesne,  it  was  resolved  to  employ 
a  trustworthy  man  to  go  among  the  western  Indians,  who  were  becoming  distrustful  of  the  French, 
and  endeavor  to  draw  them  over  to  the  interest  of  the  English.  It  would  be  a  mission  of  great  peril, 
yet  a  man  was  found  to  undertake  it.  That  man  was  Christian  Frederick  Post,  a  Moravian  who 
had  married  a  native  woman  and  had  lived  among  the  savages  seventeen  years.  He  left  Philadel 
phia  on  the  fifteenth  of  July,  proceeded  up  the  Susquehanna  river,  passed  the  French  post  at  Ve- 
nango  three  weeks  afterward,  and  held  conferences  witli  the  Indians  at  various  places.  On  the 
twenty-fourth  of  August,  he  was  with  some  Indian  friends  opposite  Fort  Duquesne,  where  he  had  a 
talk  with  many  of  the  leading  men.  He  found  the  Delawares  and  all  the  western  tribes  wavering 
in  their  affection  for  the  French.  He  made  a  favorable  impression  upon  their  minds,  yet  they  com 
plained  bitterly  of  the  encroachments  of  the  English.  "  Your  heart  is  good,"  they  said  to  Post  — 
"  you  speak  sincerely ;  but  we  know  there  is  always  a  great  number  who  wisli  to  get  rich  ;  they  have 
enough.  Look  !  we  do  not  want  to  be  rich,  and  take  away  what  others  have."  —  "  The  white  people 
think  we  have  no  brains  in  our  heads,"  said  an  old  chief.  "  They  are  big,  and  we  a  little  handful ; 
but  remember,  when  you  hunt  for  a  rattlesnake  you  can  not  find  it,  and  perhaps  it  will  bite  you 
before  you  see  it."  But  Post  persevered,  and  concluded  quite  a  definite  treaty  with  some  of  the 
most  influential  chiefs.  After  enduring  many  hardships  in  the  midst  of  perils,  he  returned  to  Phila 
delphia  early  in  September.  No  doubt  this  mission  did  much  toward  the  victory  at  Fort  Duquesne, 
in  causing  the  Indians  to  desert  the  French. 


• 


m  ^ 


" 

...'-'. 


MT.  27.]  WASHINGTON'S  MARRIAGE.  287 

our  own.  Where  will  it  meet  a  man  so  experienced  in  military 
affairs  —  one  so  renowned  for  patriotism,  conduct,  and  courage? 
Who  has  so  great  a  knowledge  of  the  enemy  we  have  to  deal  with  ? 
who  so  well  acquainted  with  their  situation  and  strength  ?  who  so 
much  respected  by  the  soldiery  ?  who,  in  short,  so  able  to  support 
the  military  character  of  Virginia  ?"  Then  requesting  him  to  name 
a  fit  successor,  they  added  in  conclusion  :  "  Frankness,  sincerity,  and 
a  certain  openness  of  soul,  are  the  true  characteristics  of  an  officer, 
and  we  flatter  ourselves  that  you  do  not  think  us  capable  of  saying 
anything  contrary  to  the  purest  dictates  of  our  minds.  Fully  per 
suaded  of  this,  we  beg  leave  to  assure  you  that,  as  you  have  hith 
erto  been  the  actuating  soul  of  our  whole  corps,  we  shall  at  all  times 
pay  the  most  invariable  regard  to  your  will  and  pleasure,  and  will 
always  be  happy  to  demonstrate  by  our  actions  how  much  we  re 
spect  and  esteem  you."-— "This  opinion,"  says  Marshall,  " was  not 
confined  to  the  officers  of  his  regiment.  It  was  common  to  Virginia, 
and  had  been  adopted  by  the  British  officers  with  whom  he  served. 
The  duties  he  performed,  though  not  splendid,  were  arduous ;  and 
were  executed  with  zeal  and  with  judgment.  The  exact  discipline 
he  established  in  his  regiment,  when  the  temper  of  Virginia  was 
extremely  hostile  to  discipline,  does  credit  to  his  military  character ; 
and  the  gallantry  his  troops  displayed,  whenever  called  into  action, 
manifests  the  spirit  infused  into  them  by  their  commander."*  And 
the  knowledge,  discipline,  and  experience,  which  the  young  soldier 
then  acquired,  were  of  vast  benefit  not  only  to  himself,  but  to  his 
country  and  to  mankind.  His  five  years7  military  service  on  the 
frontier  —  a  service  most  complicated  and  peculiar — were  the 
school-days  of  the  future  commander  of  patriot  armies — the  libera 
tor  of  his  country  —  the  champion  of  universal  liberty. 

Colonel  Washington  was  married  to  Mrs.  Custis,  at  her  residence 
in  New  Kent,  on  the  sixth  of  January,  1759.  Tradition  alone  has 
preserved  a  record  of  the  festivities  on  that  occasion.  It  was  an 
event  long  to  be  remembered  by  those  who  participated  in  it.  The 
beauty,  accomplishments,  and  ample  fortune  of  the  bride,  and  the 

*  Life  of  Washington,  second  edition,  i.,  27. 


288  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759. 

social  position  and  proud  military  distinction  of  the  bridegroom, 
drew  together  the  best  of  Virginia's  aristocracy  on  the  peninsula 
and  its  vicinity,  at  that  period  composing  the  most  refined  society 
in  America. 

Colonel  Washington  resided  with  his  wife,  at  the  White  House, 
for  three  months  after  marriage,  for  his  duties  as  a  member  of  the 
house  of  burgesses  required  his  presence  at  Williamsburg  a  consid 
erable  portion  of  that  time.  Soon  after  the  meeting  of  that  body, 
in  January,  it  was  resolved  to  return  their  thanks  to  Washington, 
in  a  public  manner,  for  the  distinguished  services  which  he  had  ren 
dered  to  his  country.  His  tried  friend,  Mr.  Robinson,  was  yet  the 
speaker,  and  upon  him  devolved  the  duty.  The  scene  on  the  occa 
sion,  as  related  by  Mr.  Wirt,  on  the  authority  of  an  eye-witness,* 
was  a  memorable  one.  "  As  soon  as  Colonel  Washington  took  his 
seat,"  says  Wirt,  "  Mr.  Robinson,  in  obedience  to  this  order,  and  fol 
lowing  the  impulse  of  his  own  generous  and  grateful  heart,  dis 
charged  the  duty  with  great  dignity,  but  with  such  warmth  of  col 
oring,  and  strength  of  expression,  as  entirely  to  confound  the  young 
hero.  He  rose  to  express  his  acknowledgments  for  the  honor;  but 
such  was  his  trepidation  and  confusion,  that  he  could  not  give  dis 
tinct  utterance  to  a  single  syllable.  He  blushed,  stammered,  and 
trembled  for  a  second ;  when  the  speaker  relieved  him,  by  a  stroke 
of  address  that  would  have  done  honor  to  Louis  the  Fourteenth  in 
his  proudest  and  happiest  moment.  'Sit  down,  Mr.  Washington/ 
said  he,  with  a  conciliatory  smile,  '  your  modesty  is  equal  to  your 
valor,  and  that  surpasses  the  power  of  any  language  that  I  pos 
sess.'  "f 

When  the  business  of  the  session  was  ended,  Washington  returned 
to  Mount  Yernon,  taking  with  him  the  future  mistress  of  that  man 
sion,  where,  as  was  said  by  a  writer  a  few  years  afterward :  "  Your 
apartments  were  your  home,  the  servants  of  the  house  were  yours, 
and,  while  every  inducement  was  held  out  to  bring  you  into  the 
general  society  of  the  drawing-room,  or  at  the  table,  it  rested  with 
yourself  to  be  served  or  not  with  everything  in  your  own  cham- 

*  Edmund  Randolph.  t  Wirt's  Life  of  Patrick  Henry. 


L 


yE-r.  27.]  WASHINGTON  IN  RETIREMENT.  289 

her."*  Then  he  laid  aside  all  ambition  for  service  in  public  life, 
except  when  his  country  should  demand  a  sacrifice  ;  and  he  resolved 
to  pass  the  remainder  of  his  days  in  that  quiet  retreat  on  the  banks 
of  the  Potomac,  employed  in  the  noble  pursuit  of  agriculture,  of 
which  he  was  so  fond.  Although  the  war  in  which,  thus  far,  he  had 
been  a  conspicuous  actor,  went  on,  it  was  far  from  the  borders  of 
his  own  dear  Virginia,  and  he  was  not  drawn  from  his  happy  home, 
by  necessity,  while  it  lasted.  Yet  he  was  not  an  indifferent  specta 
tor  of  its  shifting  scenes,  but  watched  with  intense  interest  those 
final  acts  in  the  great  drama  of  the  Seven  Years'  War,  in  America, 
which  led  to  the  prostration  of  the  French  dominion  on  this  conti 
nent,  and  the  burying  of  the  hatchet  of  many  a  fierce  tribe  of  the 
dusky  children  of  the  forest.  As  these  closing  scenes  held  intimate 
relationship  to  Washington's  after-life,  we  will  leave  him  in  his 
happy  home  for  awhile,  and  briefly  consider  them. 

The  campaign  of  1758  was  highly  honorable  and  propitious  to 
Great  Britain,  notwithstanding  the  misfortune  and  disgrace  at  Ti- 
conderoga.  The  Indian  power,  which  was  a  strong  element  in  the 
French  colonial  strength,  had  become  almost  paralyzed,  and  successes 
in  the  East  and  West  gave  increased  energy  to  the  English  and  the 
colonists.  "  The  British  nation,"  says  Graham,*}*  "  first  aroused  by 
resentment,  and  now  inflamed  with  success  and  ambition,  regarded 
the  recent  American  campaign  as  the  pledge  and  harbinger  of  fur 
ther  and  more  signal  triumphs  in  the  same  quarter."  Supported 
by  this  sentiment,  Pitt  made  every  necessary  arrangement  for  a 
vigorous  campaign,  so  as  to  close  the  war,  during  the  year  1759,  by 
the  complete  conquest  of  Canada.  Parliament,  wfith  but  one  dis 
senting  voice,  voted  for  the  year  sixty  millions  of  dollars,  and  pro 
vided  for  additional  forces  by  sea  and  land  to  an  extent  hitherto 
unknown,  and  even  unimagined,  in  England.  "This,"  exclaimed 
Lord  Chesterfield,  "  is  Mr.  Pitt's  doing,  and  it  is  marvellous  in  our 
eyes.  He  declaies  only  what  he  wrould  have  Parliament  do,  and 
they  do  it."J 

*  The  Marquis  de  Chastellux's  Travels  in  North  America,  translator's  note,  ii.,  163. 
t  Colonial  History  of  the  United  States,  ii.,  284. 
J  Correspondence  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham,  i.,  403. 

19 


290  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759. 

General  Amherst  was  appointed  to  the  chief  command  in  America, 
and,  disregarding  seniority  in  rank,  Pitt  selected,  as  other  leaders, 
the  best  officers  in  the  army.  The  plan  of  the  campaign  embraced 
several  distinct  operations,  all  having  in  view  the  reduction  of  Mon 
treal  and  Quebec  as  the  final  result  of  their  efforts.  General  Stan- 
wix  was  to  complete  the  conquest  and  occupation  of  the  French 
posts  in  the  Ohio  country  from  Fort  Pitt  to  Lake  Erie,  and  to  scout 
along  the  southern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario ;  General  Prideaux,  as 
sisted  by  Sir  William  Johnson,  was  to  reduce  Fort  Niagara;  General 
Wolfe  was  to  ascend  the  St.  Lawrence  with  a  fleet  and  army,  and 
capture  Quebec;  and  General  Amherst  was  to  advance  with  the 
main  body  to  Lake  Champlain,  and  take  possession  of  Ticonderoga 
and  Crown  Point. 

Prideaux's  expedition  was  first  accomplished.  It  was  very  im 
portant.  Fort  Niagara  was  the  key  to  the  West  and  South,  and  its 
possession  by  the  English  would  cut  off  all  communication,  by  the 
French,  with  Louisiana.  When  that  should  be  effected,  Prideaux 
was  to  descend  Lake  Ontario  and  the  St.  Lawrence,  make  himself 
master  of  Montreal,  and  there  unite  his  forces  with  those  of  Amherst 
and  Wolfe  in  the  reduction  of  Quebec.  Prideaux  embarked  at  Os- 
wego  on  the  first  of  July,  with  a  large  number  of  regulars  and  pro 
vincials,  accompanied  by  a  considerable  body  of  warriors  from 
the  Mohawk  valley  under  Sir  William  Johnson.  They  landed  with 
in  three  miles  of  the  fort  on  the  sixth,  and  completely  invested  it 
the  following  day.  It  was  a  strong  fortress,  with  bastions  and  rav 
elins,  ditches,  covered  way,  and  drawbridge,  and  other  excellent 
appointments.  The  garrison  was  six  hundred  strong,  and  a  rein 
forcement  was  daily  expected. 

Prideaux  commenced  a  cannonade  on  the  seventh,  and  began  the 
siege  by  regular  approaches.  While  in  the  trenches,  directing  op 
erations,  on  the  fifteenth,  he  was  killed  by  the  bursting  of  a  cohorn, 
when  the  command  devolved  upon  Sir  William  Johnson.  When 
Amherst  was  informed  of  the  death  of  Prideaux,  he  despatched 
Brigadier-General  Gage,  the  leader  of  Braddock's  advance,  to  con 
duct  the  siege ;  but  he  did  not  arrive  until  all  was  over.  His  ser- 


r 

JET.  27.]  CAPTURE  OF  FORT  NIAGARA.  291 

vices  were  not  needed,  for  Johnson,  though  uninstructed  in  the  art 
of  war,  conducted  operations  with  singular  skill  and  courage,  and 
pushed  on  the  entrenchments  with  more  vigor  than  Prideaux  had 
done.  These  were  nearly  completed,  when,  on  the  morning  of  the 
twenty-fourth  of  July,  scouts  brought  intelligence  that  twelve  hun 
dred  French  troops,  drawn  from  Venango,  Presqu'  Isle,  and  Detroit, 
and  a  considerable  body  of  southern  Indians,  were  approaching  from 
Niagara  falls,  led  by  Colonel  D'Aubrey,  a  gallant  officer  who  was  at 
Ticonderoga  the  previous  year.  Johnson  immediately  sent  out 
some  grenadiers  and  light  infantry,  and  a  few  of  the  Mohawk  In 
dians,  to  meet  them.  Some  of  the  Mohawks  advanced  to  parley 
with  the  French  Indians,  but  were  received  with  the  significant 
war-whoop  as  a  signal  for  attack.  The  French  and  their  allies  then 
rushed  wildly  upon  the  English,  with  shouts  and  yells,  and  were  re 
ceived  with  cool  courage,  while  the  Mohawks,  eleven  hundred  in 
number,  fell  fiercely  upon  the  flanks  of  the  enemy.  The  conflict, 
carried  on  within  sound  of  the  sullen  roar  of  the  great  cataract,  was 
severe,  and  many  fell.  In  less  than  an  hour,  however,  the  French 
and  their  savage  allies,  thoroughly  routed,  were  flying  in  confusion 
through  the  woods,  closely  pursued  and  terribly  smitten  by  the 
English  and  Mohawks.  D'Aubrey  and  seventeen  of  his  officers  were 
made  prisoners,  and  his  defeat  was  complete.  There  was  no  longer 
any  hope  for  the  garrison,  and  a  capitulation  wras  signed  the  next 
day.  The  troops  marched  out  with  the  honors  of  war,  fully  protect 
ed  from  Johnson's  Indians,  and  were  sent  prisoners  to  New  York. 
The  women,  at  their  own  request,  were  sent  with  their  children  to 
Montreal,  and  the  sick  and  wounded  were  treated  with  tender  care. 
These  humane  acts  of  the  victors  appeared  in  forcible  contrast  with 
the  cruel  events  at  the  surrender  of  Oswego  and  Fort  William  Henry. 
Encumbered  with  his  prisoners,  and  unable  to  procure  a  sufficient 
number  of  vessels  for  the  purpose,  Johnson  could  not  proceed  to 
Montreal,  according  to  the  original  plan;  so  he  garrisoned  Fort 
Niagara,  and  returned  home. 

The  fall  of  Niagara  made  the  French  extremely  solicitous  con 
cerning  the  safety  of  Montreal,  and  M.  de  Levi  was  despatched 


29-2  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759. 

from  Quebec,  with  a  considerable  force,  to  strengthen  Fort  Presen 
tation  at  Oswegatchie  (now  Ogdensburgh),  and  there  defend  the 
passage  of  the  St.  Lawrence. 

Amherst,  in  the  meanwhile,  had  assembled  twelve  thousand  men 
at  the  head  of  Lake  George.  His  excessive  caution  made  his  prog 
ress  slow ;  and  had  not  the  quicker  movements  of  Wolfe,  which 
brought  him  early  before  Quebec,  caused  Montcalm  to  draw  largely 
upon  the  garrisons  at  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  his  enterprise 
would  doubtless  have  been  as  unsuccessful  as  that  of  Abercrombie 
the  year  before.  The  extreme  weakness  of  the  enemy,  caused  by 
these  drafts,  gave  Amherst  advantages,  and  toward  the  close  of  July 
he  was  in  possession  of  Ticonderoga.  Bourlainarque,  who  command 
ed  the  garrison,  had  been  instructed  to  retreat  from  post  to  post,  if 
necessary,  until  he  should  reach  Canada,  rather  than  risk  a  defeat 
and  capture.  After  making  a  slight  resistance  on  the  approach  of 
Amherst,  and  perceiving  no  chance  for  a  successful  defence,  he  dis 
mantled  Fort  Carillon  and  retreated  to  Crown  Point  on  the  twenty- 
sixth  of  July.  Amherst  left  a  garrison  to  repair  and  occupy  the 
works  at  Ticonderoga,  and  pursued  the  fugitives.  On  the  first  of 
August,  the  French  abandoned  Crown  Point  also,  and  fled  down 
Lake  Champlain  in  boats  to  Isle  Aux  Noix,  in  the  river  Sorel,  where, 
on  the  borders  of  Canada,  they  resolved  to  make  a  stand  for  the 
defence  of  the  province.  Had  Amherst  still  pursued,  he  might  have 
followed  them  to  Montreal  and  Quebec,  gathering  laurels  of  victory 
on  the  way  ;  but  he  wasted  all  the  precious  days  of  August,  Septem 
ber,  and  a  part  of  October,  in  laying  the  foundations  of  costly  forti 
fications  at  Crown  Point,  which  could  be  of  no  service  if,  as  all  con 
fidently  expected,  the  conquest  of  Canada  should  be  achieved. 
When  Wolfe  had  performed  a  great  work  without  his  aid,  and 
Amherst  had  again  commenced  a  pursuit  of  the  French,  he  was 
met  by  a  messenger  from  Quebec,  with  intelligence  of  victory.  In 
stead  of  pushing  forward  to  Montreal,  and  making  the  conquest 
of  Canada  the  grand  result  of  the  campaign,  by  an  easy  capture  of 
that  city,  he  pleaded  the  dangers  of  mid-autumn  storms  upon  the 
lake,  and,  returning  to  Crown  Point,  went  into  winter  quarters  there. 


JEr.  27.]  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  QUEBEC.  293 

During  that  season,  his  army  constructed  that  strong  fortress  whose 
picturesque  ruins,  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  a  hundred  years,  yet 
attest  its  strength.  Amherst  was  a  brave  and  faithful  officer,  but 
his  perceptions  were  dull,  and  he  had  but  few  resources. 

Pitt  and  the  English  people  relied  more  upon  Wolfe  and  his  oper 
ations,  for  victory  in  the  New  World,  than  upon  Amherst  and  all 
the  others  engaged  in  the  campaign.*  Nor  were  they  disappointed. 
The  conduct  of  Wolfe  at  Louisburg  had  made  his  name  synonymous 
with  that  of  gallantry  and  skill ;  and  when,  late  in  November,  he 
wrote  to  Pitt — "I  take  the  freedom  to  acquaint  you,  that  I  have 
no  objections  to  serving  in  America,  and  particularly  in  the  river 
St.  Lawrence,  if  any  operations  are  to  be  carried  on  there"  —  the 
hint  was  gladly  received,  and  a  few  days  afterward  he  was  pro 
moted  to  the  rank  of  major-general,  and  placed  at  the  head  of  the 
forces  destined  to  act  against  Quebec.  He  embarked,  early  in  Feb 
ruary,  with  eight  thousand  men,  on  board  a  fleet  commanded  by 
Admiral  Saunders.  There  were  men  in  that  armament  who  sub 
sequently  occupied  conspicuous  places  in  history.  On  one  of  the 
ships  was  Jervis,  afterward  the  celebrated  Earl  St.  Vincent ;  and  the 
master  of  another  was  Captain  James  Cook,  the  renowned  circum 
navigator.  Wolfe's  adjutant-general  was  Isaac  Barre,  an  Irishman 
with  quick  wit  and  eloquent  tongue,  who,  when  in  Parliament,  a 
dozen  years  later,  lifted  up  his  voice  nobly  in  defence  of  the  op 
pressed  American  colonists.  At  the  head  of  the  grenadiers  was  Guy 
Carleton,  afterward  governor  of  Canada ;  and  William  Howe,  the 
commander-in-chief  of  the  British  army  in  America  during  the  ear 
lier  years  of  our  War  for  Independence,  commanded  a  corps  of  light 
infantry.  Besides  these,  there  were  Brigadiers  Monckton,  Town- 
shend  and  Murray,  young  and  brave  like  Wolfe  himself,  and  already 

*  "  Considering,"  says  Walpole,  "  that  our  ancient  officers  had  grown  old  on  a  very  small  por 
tion  of  experience,  which  by  no  means  compensated  for  the  decay  of  tire  and  vigor,  it  was  Mr.  Pitt's 
practice  to  trust  his  plans  to  the  alertness  and  hopes  of  younger  men.  This  appeared  particular! v 
in  the  nomination  of  Wolfe  for  the  enterprise  on  Quebec.  Ambition,  industry,  passion  for  the  ser 
vice,  were  conspicuous  in  him.  He  seemed  to  breathe  for  nothing  but  fame,  and  lost  no  moments 
in  qualifying  himself  to  compass  his  object.  He  had  studied  for  his  purpose,  and  wrote  well.  Pre 
sumption  on  himself  was  necessary  to  such  a  character,  and  he  had  it.  He  was  formed  to  execute 
the  designs  of  such  a  master  as  Pitt."  —  Memoirs  of  George  II.,  ii.,  345. 


J 


294  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759 

made  wise  by  experience  in  arms ;  and  scores  of  subalterns,  full  of 
the  spirit  of  their  commander,  inspired  the  rank  and  file  with  life, 
hope,  and  deep  earnestness. 

When  the  ice  moved  from  the  St.  Lawrence,  Wolfe  embarked  his 
army  at  Louisburg,  and,  borne  by  a  fleet  of  twenty-two  ships-of-the- 
line,  and  an  equal  number  of  frigates  and  smaller  armed  vessels, 
commanded  by  Admirals  Saunders  and  Holmes,  they  arrived  at  the 
isle  of  Orleans,  a  little  below  Quebec,  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  June. 
They  debarked  the  next  day,  and  pitched  scores  of  tents  in  the 
midst  of  fertile  and  well-cultivated  fields  around  the  pleasant  church 
of  St.  Laurent ;  and  there,  under  the  direction  of  Sir  Guy  Carleton, 
some  strong  batteries  were  erected.  Up  the  river  a  few  miles,  upon 
and  around  a  loft}'  promontory  at  the  confluence  of  the  St.  Law 
rence  and  St.  Charles  rivers,  stood  Quebec,  not  then  so  strengthened 
by  the  hand  of  art  as  now,  yet  very  strong  in  its  grand  declivities, 
on  the  summit  of  which  stood  the  citadel.  In  that  city,  and  in  a 
strongly-entrenched  camp  upon  the  heights  of  Beauport,  extending 
from  the  St.  Charles  to  the  Montmorenci  rivers,  was  an  army  of 
thirteen  thousand  men,  under  the  command  of  the  brave  and  accom 
plished  Montcalm.  His  force  consisted  of  six  battalions  of  regulars, 
and  the  remainder  of  Canadians  and  Indians.  His  headquarters 
were  at  Beauport,  the  centre  of  his  camp,  and  in  front  were  two 
batteries  placed  upon  hulks  sunk  in  the  channel  of  the  St.  Law 
rence. 

The  tents  of  the  English  army  were  just  arranged  at  sunset  on 
the  day  of  the  debarkation,  when  a  furious  thunderstorm  swept 
down  the  St.  Lawrence  with  terrible  power.  Upon  its  wings,  at 
midnight,  came  a  squadron  of  flaming  fire-ships,  sent  to  destroy  the 
English  vessels.  The  British  seamen  grappled  them  without  fear, 
towed  them  away  from  the  menaced  fleet,  and  allowed  them  to  pass 
harmlessly  down  the  river  with  the  storm. 

Finding  Orleans  to  be  too  far  away  to  operate  with  bombs  and 
cannon-shot  upon  the  city,  Wolfe  sent  General  Monckton,  on  the 
twenty-ninth,  to  take  possession  of  and  fortify  Point  Levi,  nearly 
opposite  Quebec.  This  was  done  without  much  opposition-  and, 


MT.  27.]  WOLFE  ON  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE.  295 

from  the  batteries  of  mortar  and  cannon  erected  there,  Monckton 
hurled  shells  and  red-hot  shot  upon  the  city.  Fifty  houses  were  set 
on  fire  in  one  night,  and  the  lower  town  was  laid  in  ruins ;  but  the 
citadel,  crowning  the  lofty  declivity,  remained  unscathed. 

Wolfe,  eager  for  results,  and  conscious  that  little  progress  had 
been  made,  resolved  to  lead  his  division  across  the  north  channel 
of  the  St.  Lawrence,  below  the  Montrnorenci,  and  erect  batteries 
there  within  cannon-shot  of  the  left  wing  of  the  French  camp.  This 
he  accomplished  on  the  tenth  of  July,  in  the  face  of  fierce  opposi 
tion.  Still,  Quebec  was  too  far  distant  to  be  further  harmed  by  any 
of  his  wrorks ;  and  so  well  guarded  were  the  banks  of  the  Montrno 
renci  by  steep  declivities,  all  fortified,  that  he  could  make  no  im 
pression  there.  Finally,  on  the  eighteenth,  he  boldly  passed  up  the 
river,  above  Quebec,  to  reconnoitre.  The  banks  were  steep,  and 
bristling  with  entrenchments.  The  sleepless  vigilance  of  Montcalm 
was  everywhere  visible,  and  Wolfe  saw  no  access  to  the  high  plains 
of  Abraham  which  stretched  away  from  the  weakest  side  of  the 
town.  He  retired  to  his  camp  disappointed  but  not  dispirited,  and 
resolved  to  storm  Montcalm's  entrenchments  below  Beauport,  at  all 
hazards.  Orders  were  accordingly  given,  and  preparations  were 
made. 

The  last  day  of  July  had  dawned,  when  the  troops  at  Point  Levi, 
and  a  large  number  of  grenadiers  under  Monckton,  crossed  the  St. 
Lawrence  in  the  boats  of  the  fleet,  and  landed  a  little  above  the 
Montmorenci.  At  the  same  time,  those  below  the  Montmorenci,  un 
der  Generals  Townshend  and  Murray,  crossed  that  stream  by  ford 
ing  it  near  its  mouth,  at  low  water,  and  joined  the  other  divisions 
upon  the  beach.  In  crossing,  several  boats  ran  aground,  and  much 
delay  occurred,  while  the  French  made  ample  provisions  for  receiv 
ing  the  English.  It  was  almost  night  when  the  two  divisions  met, 
and  awaited  orders  from  Wolfe,  who  was  on  the  spot.  Heavy  thun 
der-clouds  were  then  rolling  up  from  the  west.  The  grenadiers, 
impatient  of  restraint,  rushed  madly  upon  the  enemy's  works,  before 
the  other  troops,  that  were  to  sustain  them,  had  time  to  form.  They 
were  driven  back  to  the  beach  with  a  severe  loss,  and  sought  shelter 

. j 


296  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759. 

behind  a  redoubt  which  had  been  abandoned  by  the  enemy.  The 
French  kept  up  a  galling  fire,  till  the  gathering  tempest  burst  with 
great  fury  upon  the  combatants.  Night  closed  in  while  the  storm 
was  yet  raging.  The  ocean-tide  came  roaring  up  against  the  cur 
rent  of  the  St.  Lawrence  with  uncommon  strength,  and  the  British 
were  compelled  to  retreat  to  their  camp  across  the  Montmorenci,  to 
avoid  submersion  on  the  beach  by  the  foaming  waters.  The  loss  of 
the  English  in  that  unfortunate  attempt  was  more  than  four  hun 
dred  men. 

Wolfe  now  sent  General  Murray,  with  a  detachment  of  twelve 
hundred  men,  to  co-operate  with  Admiral  Holmes  in  destroying  the 
French  shipping  above  Quebec,  and  in  opening  a  communication 
with  Arnherst,  from  whom  nothing  had  been  heard.  This  expedi 
tion  was  almost  fruitless,  except  in  the  destruction  of  a  magazine ; 
but  Murray  returned  with  the  joyful  intelligence  that  the  French 
had  been  driven  from  Niagara,  Ticonderoga,  and  Crown  Point.  This 
was  a  ray  of  light  in  the  midst  of  the  gloom,  and  Wolfe  earnestly 
and  anxiously  expected  the  approach  of  Amherst  every  hour.  But 
at  that  moment,  Avhen  he  should  have  been  on  a  victorious  march 
to  assist  in  reducing  Quebec,  Amherst  was  repairing  and  building 
useless  fortifications  on  Lake  Champlain. 

Wolfe  was  greatly  dispirited  by  this  repulse  from  the  French 
works,  for  he  was  very  sensitive  to  censure,  and  he  expected  much 
for  this  miscarriage.  The  emotions  of  his  mind,  co-operating  with 
great  fatigue  of  body,  brought  on  a  fever  and  dysentery,  which 
nearly  proved  fatal,  and  it  was  almost  a  month  before  he  was  able 
to  resume  his  command  in  person.  Having  recovered  sufficiently 
to  write,  he  drew  up  a  despatch  to  Pitt  on  the  second  of  September. 
After  detailing  the  events,  referring  to  his  illness,  and  frankly  con 
fessing  that  he  had  called  a  council  of  war,  to  consult  for  the  gen 
eral  safety,  he  said  :  "  We  have  almost  the  whole  force  of  Canada  to 
oppose  us.  In  this  situation  there  is  such  a  choice  of  difficulties, 
that  I  own  myself  at  a  loss  how  to  determine.  The  affairs  of  Great 
Britain  require  the  most  vigorous  measures ;  but  then  the  courage 
of  a  handful  of  brave  men  should  be  exerted  only  where  there  is 


#>.  o7.]        PREPARATIONS  TO  ATTACK  QUEBEC.  297 

some  hope  of  a  favorable  event."  When  this  letter  reached  Eng 
land,  it  excited  consternation  and  anger.  Pitt  feared  that  he  had 
been  mistaken  in  his  favorite  general,  and  that  the  next  news  would 
be  that  he  had  either  been  destroyed  or  had  capitulated.*  But  in 
the  conclusion  of  his  melancholy  epistle,  Wolfe  had  said  that  he 
would  do  his  best;  and  that  "best"  turned  out  to  be  a  miracle  of 
war.  He  declared  that  he  would  rather  die  than  be  brought  to  a 
court-martial  for  miscarrying;  and,  in  conjunction  with  his  briga 
diers  and  Admiral  Saunders,  he  concerted,  while  stretched  upon  his 
bed  in  his  tent,  a  plan  for  scaling  the  almost  inaccessible  Heights  of 
Abraham,  and  gaining  possession  of  that  elevated  plateau  in  the 
rear  of  Quebec. 

The  camp  at  Montmorenci  was  now  broken  up,  and  all  the  troops 
and  artillery,  except  a  garrison  left  on  the  island  of  Orleans,  were 
conveyed  to  Point  Levi,  and  there  taken,  by  a  part  of  the  fleet,  far 
up  the  river,  while  the  remainder  lingered  and  made  feigned  prepa 
rations  for  a  second  attack  upon  Montcalm's  entrenchments  at  Beau- 
port.  De  Bougainville  was  sent  with  fifteen  hundred  men  to  watch 
the  movements  of  the  British  above  Quebec,  and  so  deceived  was 
the  French  commander  by  their  manoeuvres,  that  he  was  fully  per 
suaded  that  his  camp  was  to  be  attacked. 

Wolfe,  though  weak  and  suffering,  resolved  to  lead  the  expedi 
tion,  and  he  was  with  the  troops  that  ascended  the  river.  It  was 
the  twelfth  of  September,  and  the  brief  Canadian  summer  was  over. 
After  midnight,  while  clouds  were  gathering  in  the  firmament,  the 
army  left  the  vessels,  and  in  flat-boats,  without  oars  or  sails,  they 
glided  down  noiselessly  with  the  tide,  followed  by  the  ships  soon 
afterward.  Wolfe  was  in  good  spirits,  yet  there  was  evidently  a 
presentiment  of  speedy  death  in  his  mind.  At  his  evening  mess  on 

*  The  news  of  the  repulse  reached  England  on  the  morning  of  the  sixteenth  of  October,  and  was 
published  in  an  extra  "  Gazette "  of  that  date.  The  same  evening,  Captain  Hale  arrived,  and 
brought  intelligence  of  the  triumph  upon  the  plains  of  Abraham.  The  general  grief  was  suddenly 
changed  into  great  joy,  and  a  day  for  public  thanksgiving  was  set  apart  by  the  king.  In  describing 
this  event,  Horace  Walpole  wrote:  "The  incidents  of  dramatic  fiction  could  not  he  conducted  with 
more  address,  to  lead  an  audience  from  despondency  to  sudden  exultation,  than  accident  prepared 
to  excite  the  passions  of  a  whole  people.  They  despaired  —  they  triumphed  —  and  they  wept,  for 
Wolfe  had  fallen  in  the  hour  of  victory." 


293  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759. 

the  ship,  he  composed  and  sang  impromptu  that  little  song  of  the 
camp,  commencing — 

"  Why,  soldiers,  why, 

Should  we  be  melancholy,  boys  ? 
Why,  soldiers,  why  — 

Whose  business  't  is  to  die  !" 

And  as  he  sat  among  his  officers,  and  floated  softly  down  the  river 
at  the  past-midnight  hour,  a  shadow  seemed  to  come  upon  his  heart, 
and  he  repeated,  in  low,  musing  tones,  that  touching  stanza  of  Gray's 
Elegy  in  a  Country  Churchyard — 

"The  boast  of  heraldry,  the  pomp  of  power, 

And  all  that  beauty,  all  that  wealth  e'er  gave, 
Await  alike  the  inevitable  hour: 

The  path  of  glory  leads  but  to  the  grave  !" 

At  the  close,  he  whispered :  "  Now,  gentlemen,  I  would  prefer  being 
the  author  of  that  poem  to  the  glory  of  beating  the  French  to 
morrow."* 

The  flotilla  reached  a  cove  which  Wolfe  had  marked  for  a  land 
ing-place  (and  which  still  bears  his  name),  before  daybreak,  and 
there  debarked.  At  the  head  of  the  main  division,  Wolfe  pushed 
eagerly  up  a  narrow  and  rough  ravine ;  while  the  light  infantry 
and  Highlanders,  under  Colonel  Howe,  climbed  the  steep  acclivity 
by  the  aid  of  the  maple,  spruce,  and  ash  saplings  and  shrubs  which 
covered  its  rugged  face.  The  sergeant's  guard  on  its  brow  was  soon 
dispersed,  and  at  dawn,  on  the  thirteenth,  almost  five  thousand  Brit 
ish  troops  were  drawn  up  in  battle  array  on  the  plains  of  Abraham, 
three  hundred  feet  above  the  St.  Lawrence. 

Montcalm  could  hardly  believe  the  messenger  who  brought  him 
intelligence  of  this  marshalling  of  the  English  upon  the  weak  side 
of  the  city.  "It  can  be  but  a  small  party  come  to  burn  a  few 
houses,  and  return,"  he  said ;  but  he  was  soon  undeceived.  Then 
he  saw  the  imminent  danger  to  which  the  town  and  garrison  were 
exposed ;  and  he  immediately  abandoned  his  entrenchments,  and 

*  This  anecdote  is  given  on  the  nmhority  of  Midshipman  (afterward  Professor)  John  Robinson, 
of  Edinburgh,  who  was  in  the  boat  with  Wolfe. 


,Er.  27.]  DEATH  OF  WOLFE.  299 

led  a  large  portion  of  his  army  across  the  St.  Charles,  to  attack  the 
invaders.  He  sent  messengers  to  call  back  De  Bougainville,  and 
at  ten  o'clock  Montcalm  was  upon  the  plains  of  Abraham,  and  his 
army  in  battle  line.  The  French  had  three  field-pieces ;  the  English 
had  but  one,  and  that  was  a  light  six-pounder  which  some  sailors 
had  dragged  up  the  ravine. 

Wolfe  placed  himself  on  the  right,  at  the  head  of  the  Louisburg 
grenadiers,  who  were  burning  with  a  desire  to  wipe  out  the  stain  of 
their  defeat  at  the  Montmorenci.  Montcalm  was  on  the  left,  at  the 
head  of  the  regiments  of  Languedoc,  Bearne,  and  Guienne.  So  the 
two  commanders  stood  face  to  face.  Wolfe  ordered  his  men  to  load 
with  two  bullets  each,  and  to  reserve  their  fire  until  the  French 
should  be  within  forty  yards.  These  orders  were  strictly  obeyed, 
and  their  double-shotted  guns  did  terrible  execution.  After  deliv 
ering  several  rounds  in  rapid  succession,  which  threw  the  French 
into  confusion,  the  English  charged  upon  them  furiously  with  their 
bayonets. 

While  urging  on  his  battalions  in  this  charge,  Wolfe  was  singled 
out  by  some  Canadians  on  the  left,  and  was  slightly  wounded  in  the 
wrist.  He  stanched  the  blood  with  a  handkerchief,  and,  while 
cheering  on  his  men,  received  a  second  wound,  in  the  groin.  A 
few  minutes  afterward,  another  bullet  struck  him  in  the  breast,  and 
brought  him  to  the  ground,  mortally  wounded.  At  that  moment, 
regardless  of  self,  he  thought  only  of  victory  for  his  troops.  "  Sup 
port  me,"  he  said  to  an  officer  near  him ;  "  let  not  my  brave  soldiers 
see  me  drop.  The  day  is  ours — keep  it!"  He  was  taken  to  the 
rear,  while  his  troops  continued  to  charge.  The  officer  on  whose 
shoulder  he  was  leaning,  exclaimed,  "  They  run  !  they  run  !"  The 
waning  light  returned  to  the  dim  eyes  of  the  hero,  and  he  asked, 
"Who  runs?" — "The  enemy,  sir;  they  give  way  everywhere."  — 
"  What,"  feebly  exclaimed  Wolfe,  "  do  they  run  already  ?  Go  to 
Colonel  Preston,  and  tell  him  to  march  Webb's  regiment  immedi 
ately  to  the  bridge  over  the  St.  Charles,  and  cut  off  the  fugitives' 
retreat.  Now,  God  be  praised,  I  die  happy !"  These  were  his  last 
words,  and  in  the  midst  of  sorrowing  companions,  just  at  the  rno- 


300  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1760. 

inent  of  victory,  he  expired.*  Montcalm,  who  was  fighting  gal 
lantly  at  the  head  of  the  French,  also  received  a  mortal  wound. 
"Death  is  certain,"  said  his  surgeon.  "I  am  glad  of  it,"  replied 
Montcalm;  "how  long  shall  I  survive?" — "Ten  or  twelve  hours, 
perhaps  less." — "So  much  the  better:  I  shall  not  live  to  see  the 
surrender  of  Quebec !"  He  wrote  a  letter  to  General  Townshend, 
recommending  the  prisoners  to  the  humanity  of  the  British,  and 
expired  at  five  o'clock  the  next  morning.  Almost  seventy  years 
afterward,  an  English  governor  of  Canada  caused  a  noble  granite 
obelisk  to  be  erected  in  the  city  of  Quebec  to  the  memory  of  WOLFE 
and  MONTCALM. 

The  command  of  the  army  now  devolved  on  General  Townshend  ; 
and,  after  the  flight  of  the  French,  who  had  five  hundred  of  their 
number  slain  on  the  field,  he  took  a  strong  position  on  the  plains 
of  Abraham,  and  commenced  the  erection  of  redoubts,  preparatory 
to  storming  the  city.  Some  of  the  French  officers  were  disposed  to 
hold  out,  but  the  inhabitants  said  :  "  We  have  sacrificed  our  fortunes 
and  our  homes,  without  murmuring;  but  we  can  not  expose  our 
wives  and  children  to  destruction."  Five  days  afterward,  the  city 
of  Quebec  capitulated ;  and  the  remnant  of  the  grand  army  of  the 
French,  under  M.  de  Levi,  who  succeeded  Montcalm,  retired  to 
Montreal.  General  Murray  was  left  to  defend  the  battered  and 
half-ruined  city,  and  the  British  fleet,  fearful  of  frost,  weighed  an 
chor  and  left  the  St.  Lawrence,  carrying  away  about  a  thousand 
prisoners.  Thus  brilliantly  ended  the  campaign  of  1759.  But  the 
conquest  of  Canada  was  not  complete. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  1760,  De  Levi  marched  upon  Quebec  with 
a  motley  army  of  ten  thousand  men,  composed  of  French  regulars, 
Canadians,  and  Indians,  with  a  determination  to  retake  the  city. 

*  James  Wolfe  was  born  in  Westerham,  in  Kent,  England,  on  the  second  of  January,  1727.  He 
entered  the  army  very  young,  and  soon  distinguished  himself  by  skill,  judgment,  and  bravery.  His 
assault  on  Quebec  was  one  of  the  boldest  achievements  ever  attempted,  and  he  fell  at  the  age  of 
thirty-two.  His  body  was  conveyed  to  England  on  board  the  Koyal  William,  and  buried  at  Green 
wich,  on  the  twentieth  of  November,  1759,  where,  in  the  family  vault,  the  remains  of  the  hero  rest 
by  the  side  of  his  father  and  mother.  The  British  government  erected  a  monument  to  his  memory 
in  Westminster  abbey.  The  remains  of  Montcalm  rest  within  the  grounds  of  the  Ursuline  convent 
at  Quebec. 


JET.  28.]  WASHINGTON  IN  RETIREMENT.  303 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

WASHINGTON    AT    MOUNT    VERNON HIS    TASTES    AND    PURSUITS THE    MANSION 

AND    ESTATE    OF    MOUNT    VERNON THE    VIRGINIA    PLANTER DESCRIPTION    OF 

A  LARGE  ESTATE — PRODUCTS  OF  WASHINGTON'S  FARMS HIS   BUSINESS  HABITS 

IMPORTATIONS     OF     CLOTHING SOCIETY    AND     STYLE     OF     LIVING AMUSE 
MENTS ANECDOTE INTERNAL    IMPROVEMENTS. 

IT  is  delightful  to  turn  from  the  contemplation  of  the  dark  visage 
of  War,  which  presents  the  vices  of  camps,  the  tumults  of  sieges, 
and  the  clangor  of  battles,  to  that  of  the  serene  aspect  of  Peace, 
where  scenes  of  contentment  and  repose,  and  the  virtues  and  pleas 
ures  of  domestic  and  rural  life,  appear  like  luminous  pictures  of  the 
Land  of  the  Blessed. 

For  awhile  we  have  been  studying  the  character  of  Washington 
in  the  lurid  glare  or  painful  glitter  of  war,  and  have  seen  in  him 
the  development  of  attributes  which  prophesied  of  a  remarkable 
career.  Now  we  may  contemplate  his  life — his  young  and  vigor 
ous  life — in  the  soft  light  and  cool  shadows  of  social  and  domestic 
pleasures  and  the  charms  of  rural  pursuits,  varied  only  by  the  dig 
nified  and  beneficent  duties  of  a  wise  legislator  in  a  time  of  tran 
quillity.  Around  his  large  and  beautiful  estate  of  Mount  Yernon 
were  clustered  associations  of  deep  interest  for  him.  There  he  had 
passed  many  of  the  happiest  days  of  his  boyhood  under  the  careful 
eye  and  friendly  counsels  of  a  brother  who  loved  him  tenderly ;  and 
the  mansion  and  its  broad  acres,  which  he  now  came  to  occupy, 
were  the  gift  of  that  brother  when  dying.  It  was  therefore,  to  him, 
a  consecrated  spot ;  and  deeper  feelings  than  those  inspired  by  the 
idea  of  possession,  or  the  influence  of  natural  beauties,  made  it 
always  a  retreat  to  be  coveted  when  the  weight  of  public  duties 
pressed  upon  him.  Agriculture  was  his  delight;  and  at  all  times, 


304  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759-'63. 

whether  in  the  camp  or  in  the  presidential  chair,  there  was  no  theme 
for  contemplation  that  gave  his  mind  more  pleasure  than  this. 
With  an  ample  fortune  at  his  command,  and  a  large  estate,*  his 
highest  aims  seem  to  have  been  to  increase  that  fortune  by  exem 
plary  management,  and  to  sustain  an  irreproachable  character  as  a 
country-gentleman,  by  a  faithful  performance  of  citizenship  duties, 
and  the  cultivation  of  the  domestic  and  social  virtues.  With  such 
aims  he  wrote  to  a  kinsman  in  London,  a  few  months  after  his  mar 
riage  :  "  I  am  now,  I  believe,  fixed  in  this  seat,  with  an  agreeable 
partner  for  life,  and  I  hope  to  find  more  happiness  in  retirement 
than  I  ever  experienced  amidst  the  wide  and  bustling  world." 

The  mansion  at  Mount  V ernon  is  yet  standing,  with  several  of  its 
out-buildings,  all  bearing  deep  impressions  of  the  tooth  of  time ;  but 
the  aspect  of  the  landscape  around  it  is  much  changed,  except  in 
the  contour  of  the  hills  and  the  expanse  of  the  broad  Potomac.  It 
stands  upon  the  brow  of  a  high  plateau,  which  was  then  crowned 
with  the  primeval  forest,  and  commanded  a  magnificent  view  up 
and  down  the  river,  and  of  the  opposite  shores  of  Maryland.  The 
grounds  around  it  were  arranged  in  accordance  with  the  taste  of 
English  landscape-gardening  at  that  time ;  and  in  different  clearings 
of  the  forest  which  covered  a  great  portion  of  the  vast  estate,  were 
farms,  each  devoted  to  a  special  kind  of  culture,  in  which  appropri 
ate  laborers  were  employed.  System  was  everywhere  the  rule. 
The  ground  was  picturesquely  diversified ;  sometimes  furrowed  by 
deep  ravines,  or  scarred  by  shaded  dells  scooped  in  the  hillsides, 
wherein  favorite  game  found  shelter ;  and  it  was  enlivened  in  every 
direction  by  streams  of  water.  On  the  river-bank  it  was  indented 
by  estuaries  in  whose  depths  the  finest  table-fishes  sported,  and  on 

*  The  daughter  of  Lawrence  Washington  had  recently  died,  and,  according  to  the  provisions  of 
his  will,  the  estate  of  Mount  Vernon  passed  into  the  possession  of  his  brother  George.  This  was 
of  itself  an  ample  fortune  for  a  prudent  manager  like  Washington.  The  property  of  Mrs.  Wash 
ington,  added  to  this,  made  him  rank  among  the  wealthiest  planters  in  Virginia.  Her  first  husband 
had  left  her  large  landed  property,  and  more  than  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  money,  consist 
ing  of  certificates  of  deposite  in  the  bank  of  England.  The  iron  chest  in  which  these  certificates  were 
kept  (for  there  were  no  banks  in  America  at  that  time),  is  now  (1857)  in  the  possession  of  Mrs. 
Washington's  grandson,  George  W.  P.  Custis,  of  Arlington  House.  The  property  left  Mrs.  Custis 
was  equally  divided  between  herself  and  her  two  children,  a  boy  of  six  and  a  girl  of  four  years  of 
:it:e.  By  a  decree  of  the  general  court,  Washington  was  appointed  the  guardian  of  these  children. 
He  was  always  as  a  father  to  them,  and  he  managed  their  property  with  discretion  and  fidelity. 


MT.  27-31.]  A  VIRGINIA  ESTATE.  305 

whose  surface  stately  swans  and  flocks  of  wild  geese  and  ducks  de 
lighted  to  congregate.  "  No  estate  in  United  America,"  Washington 
once  wrote,  "  is  more  pleasantly  situated.  In  a  high  and  healthy 
country ;  in  a  latitude  between  the  extremes  of  heat  and  cold ;  on 
one  of  the  finest  rivers  in  the  world — a  river  well  stocked  with  va 
rious  kinds  of  fish  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  and  in  the  spring  with 
shad,  herrings,  bass,  carp,  sturgeon,  etc.,  in  great  abundance.  The 
borders  of  the  estate  are  washed  by  more  than  ten  miles  of  tide 
water  ;  several  valuable  fisheries  appertain  to  it :  the  whole  shore, 
in  fact,  is  one  entire  fishery."  Such  was  the  delightful  home  to 
which  Washington  conveyed  his  wife,  in  the  spring  of  1759. 

But  for  the  pleasures  of  social  intercourse,  which  fostered  a  bound 
less  hospitality,  the  occupation  of  a  Virginia  planter  before  the  Rev 
olution  must  have  been  extremely  monotonous.  The  estates  were 
large,  the  population  wras  scattered,  and  the  methods  of  communica 
tion  were  slow  and  inconvenient.  "  A  large  Virginia  estate  in  those 
days,"  says  Irving,  "  was  a  little  empire.  The  mansion-house  was 
the  seat  of  government,  with  its  numerous  dependencies,  such  as 
kitchens,  smoke-houses,  workshops,  and  stables.  In  this  mansion 
the  planter  ruled  supreme ;  his  steward,  or  overseer,  was  his  prime 
minister  and  executive  officer ;  he  had  his  legion  of  house-negroes 
for  domestic  service,  and  his  host  of  field-negroes  for  the  culture  of 
tobacco,  Indian  corn,  and  other  crops,  and  for  other  out-of-door 
labor.  Their  quarter  formed  a  kind  of  hamlet  apart,  composed  of 
various  huts,  with  little  gardens  and  poultry-yards,  all  well  stocked, 
and  swarms  of  little  negroes  gambolling  in  the  sunshine.  Then 
there  were  large  wooden  edifices  for  curing  tobacco,  the  staple  and 
most  profitable  production,  and  mills  for  grinding  wheat  and  Indian 
corn,  of  which  large  fields  were  cultivated  for  the  supply  of  the 
family  and  the  maintenance  of  the  negroes.  Among  the  slaves 
were  artificers  of  all  kinds,  tailors,  shoemakers,  carpenters,  smiths, 
wheelwrights,  and  so  forth." 

Tobacco  was  the  staple  product  of  Washington's  estate.  He  ex 
ported  large  quantities  to  England,  shipping  it  in  his  own  name,  in 
vessels  that  came  up  the  Potomac  and  received  it  from  his  wharves. 

20 


306  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY  [1759-'63. 

He  also  raised  large  crops  of  wheat  and  Indian  corn ;  and  so  noted 
for  excellence  was  everything  bearing  his  brand,  that  a  barrel  of 
flour  stamped  "  George  Washington,  Mount  Yernon,"  was  exempted 
from  the  customary  inspection  in  the  West  India  ports.* 

Unlike  many  of  the  Virginia  planters,  Washington  did  not  leave 
the  care  of  his  estate  wholly  to  his  overseer.  Active,  methodical, 
and  industrious,  he  exercised  a  general  personal  supervision.  He 
was  an  early  riser ;  and,  after  making  a  frugal  breakfast  upon  a  few 
Indian  cakes  and  some  tea  or  coffee,f  he  mounted  his  horse  and  vis 
ited  every  part  of  his  estate  where  the  current  operations  seemed 
to  require  his  presence. 

It  was  the  practice  in  those  days  for  the  Virginia  planters  to  send 
to  London  for  all  articles  in  common  use,  such  as  agricultural  imple 
ments,  and  saddles,  bridles,  and  harness,  for  their  horses.  Twice  a 
year,  Washington  forwarded  to  his  agent,  in  London,  lists  of  articles 
that  he  desired,  even  of  wearing-apparel  for  himself  and  family.  He 
gave  the  names,  ages,  sizes,  and  general  description,  of  the  two  chil 
dren  of  Mrs.  Washington.  In  an  order  sent  to  Richard  Washington 
in  1761,  he  says,  after  referring  to  an  invoice  of  clothes  sent:  "As 
they  are  designed  for  wearing-apparel  for  myself,  I  have  committed 
the  choice  of  them  to  your  fancy,  having  the  best  opinion  of  your 
taste.  I  want  neither  lace  nor  embroidery.  Plain  clothes,  with 
gold  or  silver  buttons,  if  worn  in  genteel  dress,  are  all  that  I  desire. 
Whether  it  be  the  fault  of  the  tailor  or  of  the  measure  sent,  I  can  not 
say,  but,  certain  it  is,  my  clothes  have  never  fitted  me  well.  I  en 
close  a  measure,  and,  for  a  further  direction,  I  think  it  not  amiss  to 
add,  that  my  stature  is  six  feet ;  otherwise  rather  slender  than  cor 
pulent."  J  Washington  always  required  his  agent  to  send  him,  in 

*  Speech  of  Robert  C.  Winthrop  on  laying  the  corner-stone  of  the  Washington  monument  at 
Washington  city. 

t  Washington's  abstemiousness  at  breakfast  appears  to  have  been  a  marked  exception  to  a  gen 
eral  rule.  The  Reverend  Andrew  Barnaby,  who  travelled  extensively  in  America  in  the  years  1759 
and  1760,  and  visited  Mount  Vernon  several  times  during  the  first  year  of  Washington's  marriage, 
says  :  "In  several  parts  of  .Virginia,  the  ancient  custom  of  eating  meat  at  breakfast  still  continues. 
At  the  top  of  the  table,  where  the  lady  of  the  house  presides,  there  is  constantly  tea  and  coffee ;  but 
the  rest  of  the  table  is  garnished  out  with  roast  fowls,  ham,  venison,  game,  and  other  dainties.  Even 
at  Williamsburg,  it  is  the  custom  to  have  a  plate  of  cold  ham  upon  the  table ;  and  there  is  scarcely 
a  Virginian  lady  who  breakfasts  without  it." 

J  "In  exact  measure,"  says  Sparks  (i.,  110),  "his  height  was  six  feet,  three  inches." 


JET.  27-31.]  STYLE  OF  LIVING.  307 

addition  to  a  general  bill  of  the  whole,  the  original  vouchers  of 
the  shopkeepers  and  mechanics  from  whom  purchases  were  made ; 
and  these,  for  many  years,  he  carefully  transcribed  into  books, 
with  his  own  hand.  He  kept  his  own  accounts,  and  with  great 
accuracy;  and  every  portion  of  his  business  was  conducted  with 
all  the  scrupulous  care  and  nicety  of  mercantile  operations.  He 
usually  drew  up  for  himself  all  papers  requiring  legal  knowledge 
and  accuracy ;  and  it  was  his  habit  through  life,  in  private  as  well 
as  in  public  transactions,  not  to  rely  upon  others  for  what  he  could 
do  himself. 

Although  plain  in  their  persons,  Washington  and  his  family  lived 
in  a  style  not  unlike  that  of  the  English  aristocracy  at  that  time. 
When  abroad,  he  always  appeared  on  horseback,  with  excellent 
equipments,*  accompanied  by  Bishop,  his  favorite  body-servant; 
and  his  stable  was  furnished  with  numerous  thoroughbred  horses, 
kept  in  the  best  condition,  and  honored  with  distinctive  names. 
For  Mrs.  Washington  and  her  lady-visiters,  he  kept  a  chariot  and 
four  horses,  writh  black  postillions  in  livery,  and  these  were  frequent 
ly  seen  and  admired  on  the  road  between  Mount  Vernon  and  Alex 
andria,  or  the  neighboring  estates.  He  loved  the  society  of  persons 
of  intelligence  and  refinement,  and  with  Mrs.  Washington  he  often 
visited  Annapolis,  the  seat  of  government  in  Maryland,  which  was 
then  distinguished  as  a  resort  of  the  wealthy,  the  fashionable,  and 
the  learned.  Mr.  Irving,-)*  on  the  authority  of  an  octogenarian  who 
had  resided  there  in  his  boyhood,  gives  a  glimpse  of  fashionable  so 
ciety  in  Annapolis  at  that  period.  "  In  those  parts  of  the  country 
where  the  roads  were  too  rough  for  carriages,"  said  his  informant, 

*  The  following  order  given  to  his  London  agent  will  give  the  reader  a  general  idea  of  his  ap 
pearance,  when  fully  equipped  for  the  road  :  — 

"  1  man's  riding-saddle,  hogskin  seat ;  large,  plated  stirrups,  and  everything  complete.  Double- 
reined  bridle,  and  Pelham  bit,  plated. 

"  A  very  neat  and  fashionable  Newmarket  saddle-cloth. 
"A  large  and  best  portmanteau,  saddle,  bridle,  and  pillion. 
"  Cloak-bag,  surcingle  ;  checked  saddle-cloth,  holsters,  &c. 

'A  riding-frock  of  a  handsome  drab-colored  broadcloth,  with  plain  double-gilt  buttons. 

'  A  riding-waistcoat  of  superfine  scarlet  cloth  and  gold  lace,  with  buttons  like  those  of  the  coat. 

'A  blue  surtout-coat. 

'  A  neat  switch-whip,  silver  cap. 

'Black-velvet  cap  for  servant." 

t  Life  of  Washington,  note,  i.,  322. 


308  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759-'63. 

"  the  ladies  used  to  ride  on  ponies,  followed  by  black  servants  on 
horseback.  In  this  way  my  mother,  then  advanced  in  life,  used  to 
travel,  in  a  scarlet  cloth  riding-habit,  which  she  had  procured  from 
England.  Nay,  in  this  way,  on  emergencies,"  he  added,  "  the  young 
ladies  from  the  country  used  to  come  to  the  balls  at  Annapolis,  riding 
with  their  hoops  arranged  'fore  and  aft'  like  lateen  sails;  and,  after 
dancing  all  night,  would  ride  home  again  in  the  morning." 

For  fifteen  years,  Washington  was  continually  a  member  of  the 
Virginia  house  of  burgesses,  being  chosen  by  large  majorities  at 
every  election ;  and  while  there,  he  met  on  terms  of  great  intimacy 
the  governor  and  others  of  the  most  eminent  men  in  the  province. 
The  civilities  which  he  received  when  abroad  were  always  returned, 
on  a  large  and  generous  scale,  at  Mount  V ernon.  "  When  he  was 
at  home,"  says  Sparks,*  "  a  day  seldom  passed  without  the  company 
of  friends  or  strangers  at  his  house.  In  his  diaries  the  names  of 
these  visiters  are  often  mentioned,  and  we  find  among  them  the 
governors  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  and  nearly  all  the  celebrated 
men  of  the  southern  and  middle  colonies,  who  were  afterward  con 
spicuous  in  the  history  of  the  country."  The  eminent  George  Ma 
son,  of  Gunston  Hall,  who  was  his  nearest  neighbor,  and  the  eccen 
tric  old  Lord  Fairfax,  of  Greenway  Court,  were  frequent  guests  at 
Mount  Vernon ;  and  among  the  occasional  visiters,  whom  Washing 
ton  esteemed  most  highly,  were  Colonel  Hugh  Mercer,  then  quietly 
following  the  business  of  a  druggist  at  Fredericksburg,  and  Doctor 
Craik,  of  Alexandria,  his  family  physician.  Both  of  them  had  been 
his  companions-in-arms,  and  the  campaigning  recollections  of  the 
three  were  fruitful  themes  for  discourse  when  they  met.  Indeed, 
every  man,  whether  officer  or  private,  who  had  been  in  military 
service  with  Washington,  always  received  a  cordial  greeting  at 
Mount  Vernon. 

Washington  was  fond  of  amusements,  especially  those  of  the  the- 
atref  and  of  the  chase.  The  former  was  then  a  recent  importation 

*  Writings  of  Washington,  i.,  111. 

t  The  first  theatrical  performance  in  America  was  at  Annapolis,  in  July,  1752.  The  players 
were  part  of  a  company  under  the  direction  of  Lewis  Hullam.  In  September  of  the  same  year  the 
whole  company  were  at  Williamsburg,  where  they  performed  Shakespeare's  Merchant  of  Venice. 


Mr.  27-31.]  THE  POACHER  PUNISHED.  309 

from  England.  The  attractive  appointments  of  the  drama  in  our 
day  were  then  unknown,  yet  the  performances  were  of  considerable 
merit,  and  delighted  the  aristocracy  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  who 
were  inexperienced  in  such  matters,  and  had  no  data  for  criticism. 
But  the  chase  was  Washington's  chief  amusement,  and  at  the  proper 
season  he  would  often  go  out  two  or  three  times  a  week  with  horses, 
dogs,  and  horns,  in  pursuit  of  foxes,  accompanied  by  his  neighbors 
or  guests.  He  wras  a  fine  horseman,  but  not  an  expert  sportsman, 
and  the  foxes  frequently  eluded  him,  only  to  fall  a  prey  to  a  more 
skilful  companion.  But  these  failures  never  disturbed  him.  His 
chief  objects,  excitement  and  recreation,  were  fully  attained,  and 
he  was  satisfied. 

Washington  was  also  fond  of  fowling ;  and  duck-shooting,  upon 
the  little  bays  along  his  river-front,  was  his  special  delight.  At  cer 
tain  seasons  of  the  year,  he  could  gratify  this  passion  to  its  fullest 
extent,  for  the  water  would  frequently  swarm  with  the  fine  canvass- 
backs,  now  such  a  luxury  upon  our  tables.  In  connection  with  this 
sport,  a  story  is  related  which  illustrates  the  muscular  strength,  per 
sonal  courage,  and  unwavering  determination,  of  Washington.  A 
lawless  vagabond  had  annoyed  him  for  a  long  time,  by  crossing  the 
river  from  the  Maryland  shore  in  a  canoe,  and  shooting  ducks  and 
other  game  in  the  vicinity  of  Mount  Vernon.  He  had  been  warned 
off  repeatedly,  but  answered  by  insulting  words.  One  day,  Wash 
ington  heard  the  report  of  a  gun,  and  mounting  his  horse,  he  rode 
in  the  direction  of  the  sound.  It  was  the  gun  of  the  reckless  intru 
der.  He  discovered  the  approach  of  Washington  just  in  time  to 
jump  into  his  canoe  and  push  from  the  shore,  when  it  became  en 
tangled  in  the  reeds.  As  Washington  dashed  through  the  bushes 
toward  him,  the  culprit  raised  his  fowling-piece,  cocked  it,  and  took 
deliberate  aim.  Washington  rode  into  the  water,  seized  the  bow 
line  of  the  canoe,  drew  it  to  the  shore,  leaped  from  his  horse, 
snatched  the  gun  and  ruined  it  by  bending  the  barrel  over  his  knee, 
and  then  inflicted  a  severe  chastisement  upon  the  poacher.  The 

There  Washington  saw  them  perform  frequently;  and,  when  they  left,  Governor  Dinwiddie  gave 
Mr.  Hallam  his  certificate  that  his  company  were  good  comedians. 


310  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759-'63. 

punishment  was  effectual,  and  intruders  upon  the  domain  of  Mount 
Vernon  were  few  and  cautious  afterward. 

Washington  loved  to  be  upon  the  bosom  of  the  Potomac,  and, 
like  other  Virginia  gentlemen  of  the  time,  who  lived  near  its  banks, 
he  kept  a  fine  barge,  and  black,  liveried  oarsmen,  for  state  occasions. 
Pleasant  sailing-boats  were  frequently  seen  sweeping  along  the  sur 
face  of  the  river,  freighted  with  ladies  and  gentlemen  going  from 
mansion  to  mansion ;  and  the  mutual  visiters  at  Belvoir  and  Mount 
Yernon  were  generally  conveyed  in  this  way  from  one  place  to  the 
other,  when  the  weather  was  fine.  When  at  Annapolis  or  Williams- 
burg,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Washington  generally  attended  the  balls  and 
parties  given  by  the  elite  of  those  provincial  capitals,  and  they  fre 
quently  joined  in  the  dance.  This  was  not  a  favorite  amusement 
of  Washington ;  and  by  the  lips  of  one  who  was  a  belle  and  a  -bride 
while  the  Revolution  was  in  progress,  we  have  been  assured  that, 
after  that  event,  either  from  disinclination  or  a  sense  of  the  dignity 
of  his  character,  Washington  never  danced.  She  had  seen  him  fre 
quently  at  balls  (for  he  loved  to  encourage  the  innocent  amuse 
ments  of  the  young),  and  he  sometimes  "  walked  a  figure,  but  never 
danced."* 

In  rural  occupations  and  pleasant  social  intercourse,  Washington 
spent  several  years  tranquilly  and  happily  at  Mount  Yernon.  He 
was  childless,  but  his  best  affections  were  cultivated  and  gratified 
by  the  daily  intercourse  and  filial  attachment  of  Mrs.  Washington's 
children,  whom  he  tenderly  loved  and  carefully  instructed.  Al 
though  he  indulged  freely  in  social  pleasures,  these  were  never 
allowed  to  interfere  with  his  duties,  public  or  private.  As  a  legisla- 

*  About  a  month  before  his  death,  Washington  wrote  the  following  note  in  reply  to  an  invitation 
from  a  committee  of  gentlemen,  at  Alexandria,  for  himself  and  Mrs.  Washington  to  attend  the 
dancing  assemblies  at  that  place  :  — 

"  To  Messrs.  Jonathan  Siuift,  George  Deneale,  William  yen-ton,  Robert  Young,  Charles  Alexander,  jr., 

James  II.  Hoole,  Managers. 

".MOUNT  VKRNON,  Kth  Novrmber,  1799. 

"  GENTLEMEN  :  Mrs.  Washington  and  myself  have  been  honored  with  your  polite  invitation  to 
the  assemblies  of  Alexandria,  this  winter,  and  thank  you  for  this  mark  of  your  attention.     But  alas  ! 
our  dancing-days  are  no  more.     We  wish,  however,  all  those  who  have  a  relish  for  so  agreeable  and 
innocent  an  amusement,  all  the  pleasure  the  season  will  afford  them ;  and  I  am,  gentlemen, 
"  Your  most  obedient  and  obliged 

"  Humble  servant,  "  GEORGE  WASHINGTON." 


M'v.  27-31.]  THE  DISMAL  SWAMP.  311 

tor,  he  was  punctual  and  industrious ;  as  a  judge  of  Fairfax  county, 
he  was  studious  and  prompt;  and  every  matter  of  public  concern 
engaged  his  earnest  thoughts,  and  frequently  his  personal  services. 

Schemes  for  internal  improvements,  for  facilitating  the  develop 
ments  of  the  resources  of  the  country,  often  occupied  Washington's 
most  serious  attention.  At  about  the  time  we  are  considering,  he 
was  engaged,  with  some  other  enterprising  gentlemen,  in  a  project 
to  drain  the  Dismal  swamp,  an  immense  morass,  lying  partly  in 
Virginia  and  partly  in  North  Carolina,  and  extending  thirty  miles 
from  north  to  south,  and  ten  miles  from  east  to  west.  Within  its 
dark  bosom,  and  nowhere  appearing  above  its  surface,  are  the 
sources  of  five  navigable  rivers  and  several  creeks ;  and  in  its  cen 
tre  is  a  body  of  water  known  as  Drummond's  lake,  so  named  from 
its  alleged  first  discoverer.  A  great  portion  of  the  morass  is  covered 
with  tall  cypresses,  cedars,  hemlocks,  and  junipers,  draped  with  long 
mosses  and  covered  with  creeping  vines.  In  many  places  it  is  made 
impassable  by  fallen  trees,  thick  brakes,  and  a  dense  growth  of 
shrubbery.  Thomas  Moore,  who  visited  it  in  1804,  has  well  indi 
cated  its  character,  in  the  following  stanzas  of  his  legendary  poem, 
called  The  Lake  of  the  Dismal  Swamp  :  — 

"Away  to  the  Dismal  swamp  he  speeds  — 

His  path  was  rugged  and  sore, 
Through  tangled  juniper,  beds  of  reeds, 
Through  many  a  fen  where  the  serpent  feeds, 
And  man  never  trod  before  ! 

"And  when  on  the  earth  he  sunk  to  sleep, 

If  slumber  his  eyelids  knew, 
He  lay  where  the  deadly  vine  doth  weep 
Its  venomous  tears,  and  nightly  steep 

The  flesh  with  blistering  dew  !"* 

*  "  They  tell  of  a  young  man,"  says  Moore,  in  his  introduction  to  his  poem,  "who  lost  his  mind 
upon  the  death  of  a  girl  he  loved  ;  and  who,  suddenly  disappearing  from  his  friends,  was  never  after 
ward  heard  of.  As  he  frequently  said,  in  his  ravings,  that  the  girl  was  not  dead,  but  gone  to  the 
Dismal  swamp,  it  is  supposed  that  he  had  wandered  into  that  dreary  wilderness,  and  had  died  of 
hunger,  or  been  lost  in  some  of  its  dreadful  morasses."  The  poet  makes  him  say  :  — 

"  They  made  her  grave  too  cold  and  damp,  "  And  her  fire-fly  lamp  I  eoon  shall  see, 

For  a  soul  so  warm  and  true,  Ami  her  paddle  I  soon  shall  hear ; 

And  she's  gone  to  the  lake  of  the  Dismal  swamp,  Long  arid  loving  our  life  shall  be, 

Where  all  night  long  by  her  fire-fly  lamp  And  1  '11  hide  the  maid  in  a  cypress-tree, 

She  paddles  her  white  canoe  When  the  footsteps  of  Death  are  near  !" 


312  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1759-'G3. 

Toward  the  southern  portions  of  the  swamp  there  is  a  tract  cov 
ered  with  reeds,  without  any  trees.  These  are  continually  green, 
and,  as  they  wave  in  the  wind,  have  the  appearance  of  water.  On 
that  account  it  is  called  "  The  Green  Sea."  The  eastern  borders 
of  the  swamp  are  covered  with  tall  reeds,  closely  interlaced  with 
thorny  bamboo-briers,  and  present  an  almost  impassable  barrier 
even  to  the  wild  beasts  that  prowl  there.  Into  this  dismal  region 
Washington  penetrated,  on  foot  and  on  horseback,  until  he  reached 
the  lake  in  its  centre.  He  circumtraversed  this  lake,  in  a  journey 
of  almost  twenty  miles,  sometimes  over  a  quaking  bog,  and  at  oth 
ers  in  mud  and  water ;  and  just  at  sunset  he  reached  the  solid  earth 
on  the  margin  of  the  swamp,  wrhere  he  passed  the  night.  The  next 
day  he  completed  his  explorations,  and  having  observed  the  soil,  its 
productions,  the  lake  and  its  altitude,  he  returned  home,  convinced 
that  the  immense  morass  might  be  easily  drained,  for  it  lay  consid 
erably  higher  than  the  surrounding  country.  Through  his  influ 
ence,  the  Virginia  legislature  gave  a  charter  to  an  association  of 
gentlemen  who  constituted  the  "  Dismal  Swamp  Company."  Some, 
less  sanguine  of  success  than  Washington,  withheld  their  co-opera 
tion,  and  the  project  was  abandoned  for  the  time. 

It  was  reserved  for  the  enterprise  of  a  later  day  to  open  the  Dis 
mal  swamp  to  the  hand  of  industry.  A  canal  now  passes  through 
it  from  north  to  south,  upon  the  bosom  of  which  immense  quantities 
of  shingles  and  lumber  are  floated  to  accessible  deposites.  By  that 
canal  the  swamp  might  easily  be  drained,  and  converted  into  fine 
tillable  land.  To  every  visiter  there,  the  wisdom  and  forecast  of 
Washington,  in  suggesting  such  improvement  a  hundred  years  ago, 
is  remarkably  manifest. 


JET.  27-31.]  EFFECTS  OF  THE  TREATY  OF   PARIS.  313 


CHAPTER   XXX. 

TREATY    OF   PARIS BRITISH   PRIDE,  AND   THE   SPIRIT   OF  THE  COLONISTS BOARD 

OF     TRADE    AND     ITS     OPERATIONS TAXATION WHAT     THE     COLONISTS     HAD 

DONE COMMERCIAL    INFLUENCE CANADA    AND     THE     WEST    INDIES  —  WRITS 

OF    ASSISTANCE OPPOSITION    TO    THEM JAMES    OTIS WASHINGTON    A    COM 
MISSIONER    TO    SETTLE    MILITARY    ACCOUNTS PONTIAC'S    WAR RENEWAL    OF 

COLONIAL     DISCONTENTS THEIR     INFLUENCE     UPON     WASHINGTON REVENUE 

LAWS GEORGE    GRENVILLE THE    STAMP-ACT    PROPOSED EFFECTS    OF    THE 

PROPOSITION PASSAGE    OF    THE    STAMP-ACT. 

THE  war  which  commenced  in  America,  finally  spread  over  por 
tions  of  western  Europe  and  the  West  India  islands,  and  Spain 
became  a  party  in  the  quarrel,  on  the  side  of  France.  That  contest 
was  ended  by  a  treaty  signed  at  Paris  on  the  tenth  of  February, 
1763.  By  its  provisions,  the  British  possessions  in  America  were 
made  to  extend  from  the  Atlantic  ocean  to  the  Mississippi  river, 
and  from  the  gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Arctic  circle.  It  was  a  conquest 
vast  and  immensely  important,  and  Britain  was  justly  proud  of  the 
extent  and  character  of  her  dominions  in  the  New  World.  That 
pride  gave  birth  to  intense  desires  for  power,  and  a  jealousy  of  her 
transatlantic  children,  in  whom  she  had  discovered  so  much  strength 
and  other  palpable  elements  of  independent  growth.  That  pride 
and  jealousy,  quickened  by  this  perception,  had  been  active  a  long 
time  before  the  close  of  the  war,  when  the  result  was  plainly  fore 
shadowed,  in  endeavors  to  weave  a  bond  of  indissoluble  union  be 
tween  the  colonies  and  the  mother-country.  And  it  might  have 
been  indissoluble,  if  its  texture  had  been  composed  of  wise  and  just 
materials;  for  the  Anglo-Americans  were  proud  of  their  origin,  and 
of  their  political  connection  with  a  government  so  powerful  as  that 
of  Great  Britain,  strengthened  as  it  was  by  many  and  important 
victories  when  the  contest  drew  to  a  close. 


314  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1761-'63. 

From  the  beginning,  the  colonists  had  evinced  an  impatience  of 
arbitrary  rule ;  and  every  manifestation  of  undue  control  by  local 
magistrates  or  distant  monarchs  —  every  effort  to  abridge  their  lib 
erties  or  absorb  their  gains  —  had  stimulated  the  growth  of  demo 
cratic  principles.  These  now  permeated  the  whole  social  life  in 
America,  and  finally  evolved  from  the  crude  materials  of  royal  char 
ters,  religious  covenants,  and  popular  axioms,  that  galaxy  of  repre 
sentative  governments  which,  having  the  justice  of  the  English 
constitution,  the  truth  of  Christian  ethics,  and  the  wisdom  of  past 
experience  for  their  foundation,  were  united,  in  "  the  fullness  of 
time,"  in  that  symmetrical  combination  of  free  institutions — the 
REPUBLIC  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

The  board  of  trade  and  plantations,  through  which  the  colonists 
were  ruled,  had  been  for  a  long  time  much  troubled  by  the  persist 
ence  of  the  colonial  assemblies  in  claiming  the  right  of  free  deliber 
ation.  It  had  finally  resolved  to  make  the  colonies  feel  the  superi 
ority  of  the  imperial  government,  and  to  bow  submissively  to  its 
will ;  and  to  this  end  an  alteration  in  the  several  colonial  charters 
was  determined  upon  in  council,  with  the  full  concurrence  of  the 
young  king.*  The  chief  alteration — the  strongest  link  in  the  chain 
of  tyrannous  measures  nowr  contemplated — was  that  which  would 
make  all  of  the  government  officials  in  America  dependent  upon 
the  crown,  and  necessarily  become  supple  instruments  of  its  will. 
It  was  also  resolved,  in  council,  to  establish  episcopacy,  as  the  gov 
ernment  religion,  in  the  colonies.-}-  Under  the  direction  of  the  earl 

*  King  George  the  Second  died  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  October,  1760,  and  was  succeeded  by  his 
grandson,  Prince  George,  son  of  the  deceased  Frederick,  prince  of  Wales.  Young  George  was  mar 
ried  in  September,  1761,  and  in  the  same  month  their  majesties  were  crowned.  Among  those  pres 
ent  at  that  coronation  was  John  Hancock,  of  Boston,  who,  a  few  years  later,  became  an  arch-rebel, 
and  out  of  the  pale  of  that  monarch's  clemency.  King  George  was  an  honest  but  weak  man,  and 
during  the  earlier  years  of  his  reign  he  was  controlled  by  weak  and  wicked  advisers.  Himself  and 
his  queen  were  pure  in  their  morals,  and  their  conduct  gave  such  tone  to  society,  that  its  influence 
for  good  was  soon  perceived.  George  was  king  almost  sixty  years,  having  ascended  the  throne  in 
1760  and  died  early  in  1820.  For  two  years  (1787  to  1789)  he  was  afflicted  with  insanity.  The 
malady  returned  in  1801,  and  terminated  his  political  life.  He  was  in  his  eighty-second  year  when 
he  died. 

t  Among  other  "reforms  in  the  colonies"  proposed  by  Bute  and  his  associates  was  the  curtail 
ment  of  the  dissenting  influence  in  religious  matters  in  America,  by  the  establishment  of  episcopacy 
there.  As  early  as  1748,  Doctor  Tucker,  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury,  had  offered  the  mitre  to 
puritan  divines,  but  they  refused  it.  The  colonists,  viewing  episcopacy  in  its  worst  light,  as  cxhib- 


JET.  29-31.]  TAXING  THE  COLONIES.  315 

of  Bute,  the  king's  confidential  adviser,  a  cabinet  was  formed  of 
materials  appropriate  for  such  work ;  and  Charles  Townshend,  who 
was  ever  ready  to  assume  large  powers,  and  was  thoroughly  im 
pressed  with  the  omnipotence  of  Parliament,  was  chosen  first  lord 
of  the  board  of  trade,  and  chief  instrument  in  the  administration  of 
the  colonies.  Associated  with  him  in  the  work  of  binding  the  Amer 
icans,  were  the  eminent  Lord  Mansfield,  the  great  English  jurist; 
George  Grenville,  author  of  the  stamp-act  at  a  later  period ;  the 
Duke  of  Bedford,  the  representative  of  the  landed  aristocracy  of 
Great  Britain ;  and  the  hot-headed  and  unscrupulous  earl  of  Egre- 
mont,  who,  before  this,  had  sought  to  make  some  of  the  colonies 
tremble  beneath  the  menaces  of  his  official  frowns. 

Townshend  was  bold  and  honest,  and  despised  dissimulation.  He 
therefore  announced  explicitly,  when  the  ministerial  schemes  were 
ripe,  that  there  would  be  "  no  more  requisitions  from  the  king,"  but 
an  immediate  taxation  of  the  colonists  by  Parliament,  for  revenue 
was  wanted  and  must  be  created.  The  war  had  exhausted  the 
British  treasury ;  and  the  ministry,  having  observed  the  resources 
of  the  colonists,  as  manifested  by  their  efforts  during  the  recent 
struggle,  looked  to  them  for  aid  in  replenishing  the  exchequer. 
But  instead  of  asking  it  as  a  favor,  it  was  demanded  as  a  right ;  in 
stead  of  inviting  the  colonial  assemblies  to  levy  taxes  and  make 
appropriations,  government  assumed  the  right  to  tax  their  expand 
ing  commerce,  and  levy  heavy  tribute  upon  their  industry.  For 
more  than  a  hundred  years  that  commerce  and  industry  had  felt 
the  restrictions  of  the  board  of  trade.  Yet  the  colonists  had  strug 
gled  up,  unaided  and  alone,  from  feebleness  to  strength.  They  had 

ited  in  the  early  days- of  the  American  settlements,  had  been  taught  to  fear  such  power,  if  it  should 
happen  to  be  wielded  by  the  hand  of  a  crafty  politician,  more  than  the  arm  of  civil  government. 
They  knew  that  if  Parliament  had  power  to  create  dioceses  among  them,  and  appoint  bishops,  it 
would  introduce  tithes,  and  crush  heresy.  For  years,  controversy  upon  this  subject  ran  high  in 
America,  and  much  acrimony  appeared  on  both  sides.  The  most  prominent  American  writers  on 
the  subject  were  William  Livingston,  afterward  governor  of  New  Jersey,  and  Doctor  Chandler,  and 
Samuel  Seabury,  the  latter  of  whom  was  subsequently  made  a  bishop.  The  former  wrote  against 
episcopacy,  the  two  latter  in  favor  of  it.  Episcopacy  was  introduced  into  America,  but  not  as  a  na 
tional  establishment.  It  took  root,  and  flourished.  When  the  Revolution  broke  out  in  1775,  there 
were  many  of  its  adherents  (Washington  among  them)  found  on  the  side  of  liberty;  though  gener 
ally,  so  intimate  was  its  relation  to  the  throne,  through  the  mother-church,  that  its  loyalty  became 
a  subject  of  reproach  and  suspicion,  for  the  episcopalian  clergy,  as  a  body,  were  active  or  passive 
loyalists 


316  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1761-63. 

built  fortifications,  raised  armies,  and  fought  battles,  for  England's 
glory  and  their  own  preservation,  without  England's  aid,  and  often 
without  her  sympathy.*  Compelled  to  be  self-reliant  from  the  be 
ginning,  they  were  made  strong  by  the  mother's  neglect ;  and  when 
to  that  neglect  she  finally  added  oppression  and  scorn,  they  felt 
justified  in  using  their  developed  strength  in  defence  of  their  rights, 
and  in  regarding  the  restrictions  of  the  board  of  trade,  now  sought 
to  be  vigorously  enforced,  as  mere  ropes  of  sand.  Now  was  com 
menced  the  fulfilment  of  the  Duke  de  Choiseul's  prediction,  made 
when  Canada  fell. 

In  the  British  councils,  everything  was  compelled  to  bend  to  the 
commercial  interests  of  the  realm.  The  influence  of  the  merchants 
was  omnipotent.  The  depreciation  of  the  paper  currency  issued 
by  some  of  the  colonies,  had  caused  them  some  loss,  and,  on  their 
memorializing  the  board  of  trade  on  the  subject,  it  was  ordered  that 
no  paper  issued  by  colonial  assemblies,  should  thenceforward  be  a 
legal  tender  in  payment  of  debts.  This  measure  excited  great 
indignation  in  America.  "  This  stir  of  the  merchants,"  wrote  Wash 
ington,  "  seems  to  me,  ill-timed,  and  can  not  be  attended  with  any 
good  effects,  but,  I  fear,  the  contrary."  Even  before  the  treaty  of 
Paris,  the  suggestions  of  the  commercial  interests  were  more  power 
ful  than  considerations  favorable  to  the  colonists,  and  it  was  resolved 
by  the  British  ministry  to  restore  Canada  to  the  French,  and  retain 
the  English  conquests  in  the  West  Indies,  if  both  could  not  be 
secured.  This  unjust  compliance  with  temporary  expediency,  to 
the  sacrifice  of  everything  for  which  the  colonists  had  so  faithfully 
contended,  awakened  their  strongest  fears,  and  Dr.  Franklin  wrote, 
and  widely  disseminated,  a  pamphlet,  entitled  The  Interests  of  Great 
Britain  considered  ivith  regard  to  the  Colonies,  and  the  Acquisition  of  Canada 

*  The  French  and  Indian  War  cost  the  aggregate  colonies  full  twenty  millions  of  dollars,  besides 
the  flower  of  their  youth  ;  and,  in  return,  Parliament  had  granted  them,  through  the  liberality  of 
Pitt,  about  five  and  a  half  millions  of  dollars.  Georgia  alone  received  parliamentary  aid  in  its  set 
tlement.  In  all  the  other  colonies,  where  vast  sums  were  expended  in  fitting  out  expeditions, 
purchasing  the  soil  of  the  Indians,  and  sustaining  the  settlers,  neither  the  crown  nor  parliament  ever 
contributed  a  farthing  of  pecuniary  aid.  The  settling  of  Massachusetts  alone  cost  private  individu 
als  a  million  of  dollars.  Lord  Baltimore  spent  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  colonizing  Mary 
land,  and  William  Penn  became  deeply  involved  in  debt  in  his  efforts  to  settle  and  improve  Penn 
sylvania 


JET.  29-31.]  WRITS  OF  ASSISTANCE.  317 

and  Guadeloupe.  This  pamphlet  met  with  a  warm  response ;  and  so 
heartily  did  Washington's  feelings  sympathize  with  its  sentiments, 
that  he  used  every  means  in  his  power  to  lay  it  before  men  of 
influence  in  his  own  and  in  other  colonies. 

The  first  measure  of  the  government  which  aroused  the  colonies 
to  a  lively  sense  of  their  danger,  was  the  issuing  of  writs  of  assist 
ance,  as  they  were  called,  in  1761.  The  officers  appointed  to  collect 
revenue  from  customs,  in  America,  had  been  instructed  to  be  vigi 
lant  and  rigorous  in  the  performance  of  their  duty.  They  found 
opposition  among  the  people  on  every  hand ;  and,  on  the  petition 
of  one  of  their  officials,  the  supreme  court  of  judicature  issued 
warrants  to  customhouse  officers,  giving  them,  and  their  deputies, 
a  general  power  to  violently  enter  houses  or  stores  where  it  might 
be  suspected  that  contraband  goods  were  concealed ;  and  sheriffs 
and  others  were  compelled  to  assist  in  the  work.  The  idea  of  such 
latitude  being  given  to  "  the  meanest  deputy  of  a  deputy's  deputy," 
created  general  indignation  and  alarm.  It  might  cover  the  grossest 
abuses,  and  no  man's  privacy  would  be  free  from  the  invasion  of 
these  ministerial  hirelings.  The  practical  idea  contained  in  the 
British  constitution,  that  "  every  man's  house  is  his  castle,"  would 
thus  become  a  mere  abstraction.  Open  resistance  was  resolved 
upon,  if  necessary.  The  legality  of  the  measure  was  at  once  ques 
tioned,  in  Massachusetts,  and  the  matter  was  brought  before  a  court 
held  in  the  old  town-hall  in  Boston.  The  advocate  for  the  crown 
argued,  that  as  Parliament  was  the  supreme  legislature  for  the 
whole  British  nation,  and  had  authorized  these  writs,  no  subject  had 
a  right  to  complain.  He  was  answered  by  James  Otis,  the  younger, 
then  advocate-general  of  the  province.  On  that  occasion  the 
intense  fire  of  his  patriotism  beamed  forth  with  inexpressible  bril 
liancy,  and  he  boldly  called  upon  the  people  to  breast  any  storm 
of  ministerial  vengeance  that  might  be  aroused  by  opposition  here. 
His  eloquence  was  like  lightning,  far-felt  and  consuming.  "  He  was 
a  flame  of  fire,"  said  John  Adams,  afterward.  "  The  seeds  of  pa 
triots  and  heroes  were  there  and  then  sown,  and  when  the  orator 
exclaimed :  4  To  my  dying  day  I  will  oppose,  with  all  the  power 


318  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1761-'63. 

and  faculties  God  has  given  me,  all  such  instruments  of  slavery  on 
one  hand,,  and  villany  on  the  other/  American  independence  was 
there  and  then  born.  Every  man  of  an  immense  crowded  audience 
appeared  to  me  to  go  away,  as  I  did,  ready  to  take  up  arms  against 
writs  of  assistance."*  The  assembly  sided  with  Otis,  and  even 
Governor  Bernard  was  opposed  to  the  measure.  From  that  day 
began  the  triumphs  of  the  popular  will.  Very  few  writs  were 
issued,  and  these  were  ineffectual. 

In  these  political  movements  Washington  took  a  lively  interest, 
not  only  as  a  legislator,  but  as  a  private  citizen  who  loved  his  coun 
try.  He  anxiously  watched  the  progress  of  events,  and  when  the 
voice  of  Otis  found  a  ready  response,  in  spirit  if  not  yet  in  words,  in 
the  Virginia  assembly,  no  member  of  that  body  more  warmly  sym 
pathized  with  the  opposition  to  oppressive  measures  in  Massachu 
setts,  than  Colonel  Washington.  And  when  the  definitive  treaty  was 
signed  at  Paris,  and  Canada  was  secured  to  the  English,  he  expressed 
his  gratification  in  all  his  letters  at  that  time.  Then  he  was  called 
upon  to  perform  an  arduous  public  duty.  He  was  appointed  one 
of  the  commissioners  to  settle  the  military  accounts  of  the  colony, 
wrhich  were  numerous  and  very  complicated.  His  method,  his  com 
plete  knowledge  of  the  subject,  and  the  great  sympathy  which  he  felt 
for  his  companions-in-arms,  and  others  who  had  served  his  country, 
caused  him  to  execute  this  difficult  task  faithfully  and  judiciously, 
and  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  the  colonists  looked  forward  to  long  years 
of  repose  and  prosperity,  for  they  regarded  the  power  of  the  Indians 
as  completely  paralyzed.  As  there  appeared  to  be  safety  for  set 
tlers  west  of  the  mountains,  emigration  began  to  pour  its  living 
streams  over  those  hitherto  barriers  of  civilization.  But,  at  that 

*  Later  than  this  (1768),  Otis,  writing  to  a  friend  in  London,  said  :  "  Our  fathers  were  a  good  peo 
ple  ;  we  have  been  a  free  people,  and  if  you  will  not  let  us  remain  so  any  longer,  we  shall  be  a  great 
people,  and  the  present  measures  [various  taxation  schemes]  can  have  no  other  tendency  hut  to 
hasten,  with  great  rapidity,  events  which  every  good  and  honest  man  would  wisli  delayed  for  ages." 
Otis  evidently  referred  to  the  future  independence  of  the  colonies.  That  event  he  did  not  live  to 
see.  His  clear  mind  was  clouded,  in  1709,  by  a  blow  on  the  head,  given  by  a  bludgeon  in  the  hands 
of  a  government  official,  which  kept  reason  from  its  throne  most  of  the  time.  All  through  the  Revo 
lution  which  his  eloquence  had  helped  to  kindle,  he  was  an  almost  indifferent  spectator ;  and,  in 
Mav,  1782,  he  was  killed  by  lightning,  in  accordance  with  his  often-expressed  desire. 


JET.  29-31.]  PONTIAC'S  WAR.  319 

very  moment,  imminent  danger  to  their  peace  and  existence  Avas 
impending.  Pontiac,  a  sagacious  Ottawa  chief,  who,  like  Philip  of 
Pokanoket,  saw  no  future  for  his  nation,  and  who  had  been  an  early 
ally  of  the  French,  went  secretly  from  tribe  to  tribe  among  the  Algon- 
quins,  and  obtained  their  solemn  pledges  to  a  confederation,  whose 
object  was  the  expulsion  of  the  English  from  the  country  west  of  the 
Alleghanies.  After  the  fall  of  Montreal  he  had  professed  an  attach 
ment  to  the  English,  and  quieted  every  suspicion.  So  adroitly  were 
his  plans  matured,  that  the  commanders  of  the  western  forts  had 
no  suspicion  of  his  conspiracy  until  it  was  fully  ripe,  and  the  first 
blow  had  been  struck,  in  June,  1763.  Then  it  was  discovered  that 
the  Shawnees  and  Delawares,  those  with  whom  Washington  was 
most  familiar,  were  the  chief  conspirators.  Even  some  of  the  chiefs 
who  had  been  his  allies,  were  now  upon  the  war-path ;  and,  prac 
tising  treachery  on  every  hand,  they  were  the  worst  foes  of  the 
English.  They  massacred  traders  whom  they  had  invited  among 
them,  and  seized  their  property;  and  large  scalping-parties  ad 
vanced  to  the  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia, 
spreading  death  and  desolation  in  their  track.  They  boldly  attacked 
the  English  outposts  almost  at  the  same  moment ;  and,  within  a  fort 
night  all  of  these  west  of  Oswego,  except  Niagara,  Fort  Pitt,  and 
Detroit,  fell  into  their  hands. 

These  successes  gave  heart  to  more  remote  tribes,  and  a  general 
Indian  war,  extending  from  Canada  to  the  gulf,  was  apprehended. 
Even  the  Six  Nations,  so  long  the  firm  friends  of  the  English,  were 
anxious  to  burst  the  bonds  of  treaties,  and  engage  in  an  extermi 
nating  war ;  and  nothing  but  the  potential  influence  of  Sir  William 
Johnson  kept  the  warriors  of  that  powerful  confederacy  in  neutral 
quietude.  For  a  moment,  the  stoutest  hearts  quailed  before  the 
threatenings  of  the  rising  storm,  for  no  one  could  estimate  its  prob 
able  extent,  and  destructive  energies.  The  inhabitants  on  the 
Virginia  border,  remembering  the  horrors  of  the  past,  were  exceed 
ingly  distressed  by  fear.  "Another  tempest  has  arisen  upon  our 
frontiers,"  Washington  wrote  to  a  friend,  "  and  the  alarm  spread 
wider  than  ever.  In  short,  the  inhabitants  are  so  apprehensive  of 


320  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1763. 

danger,  that  no  families  remain  above  the  Conococheague  road,  and 
many  are  gone  below  it.  The  harvests  are  in  a  manner  lost,  and 
the  distresses  of  the  settlements  are  evident  and  manifold.  In 
Augusta  many  people  have  been  killed,  and  numbers  fled.  Con 
fusion  and  despair  prevail  in  every  quarter."  No  doubt  the  sympa 
thetic  heart  of  Washington  made  him  yearn  to  be  in  the  field,  to 
oppose  this  wave  of  desolation,  but  his  duties  as  a  legislator,  and 
enterprises  of  public  importance  now  engaged  his  active  mind,  and 
kept  him  from  the  rough  conflicts  of  war  with  the  savages. 

Fortunately  for  the  English,  the  Indians  could  not  garrison  the 
forts  they  had  taken,  and  they  yet  held  the  three  most  important 
ones.  Amherst,  still  in  command  in  America,  had  a  force  too  small 
to  attempt  the  re-establishment  of  the  lost  posts,  so  he  directed  all 
of  his  efforts  to  the  salvation  of  Niagara,  Fort  Pitt,  and  Detroit,  and 
was  successful.  In  July,  Detroit  was  closely  besieged  by  Pontiac, 
and  Fort  Pitt  by  Shingis,  the  celebrated  Delaware  chief.  A  con 
siderable  force  was  sent  to  the  relief  of  the  former,  and  Colonel 
Boquet,  with  five  hundred  men,  proceeded  to  reinforce  the  latter, 
and  drive  the  besieging  savages  back  into  the  wilderness.  The 
Indians  came  forward  to  meet  him,  and  he  was  severely  attacked 
at  Bushy  Run,  on  the  fifth  of  August.  A  general  battle  ensued, 
and  ended  only  with  the  day.  The  Indians  resumed  it  the  next 
morning,  but  were  finally  compelled  to  flee  to  the  deep  wilderness 
for  safety.  Four  days  afterward  Boquet  reached  Fort  Pitt,  and  it 
was  saved.  Niagara  was  not  attacked ;  and  Detroit,  after  sustaining 
a  siege  for  almost  twelve  months,  was  relieved  by  a  force  under 
Colonel  Bradstreet,  in  May,  1764.  The  Indians  were  now  speedily 
subdued.  Their  power  to  harm  the  English  was  completely  broken, 
and  the  hostile  tribes  sent  their  chiefs  to  humbly  ask  for  pardon 
and  peace.  But  the  haughty  Pontiac  refused  to  bow  to  stern  neces 
sity.  He  went  to  the  country  of  the  Illinois,  where  he  was  treach 
erously  murdered  by  a  Peoria  Indian,  wyho  \vas  bribed  by  an  Eng 
lishman  to  perform  the  wicked  deed.  The  pay  was  a  barrel  of 
rum.  The  place  of  his  death  was  Cahokia,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  Mississippi,  a  little  below  St.  Louis.  He  was  buried  at  the 


j£r.  32.]  A  CRISIS  321 

latter  place,  and  his  grave  is  beneath  that  populous  city  of  the 
West, 

The  discontents  of  the  Americans,  which  had  been  awakened  by 
the  unwise  measures  of  Great  Britain,  had  been  lulled  for  awhile  in 
the  presence  of  the  more  tangible  trouble  of  an  Indian  war.  When 
that  had  ceased,  the  popular  mind  became  again  excited  by  the 
movements  of  the  British  ministry  which  were  inimical  to  liberty 
in  America.  The  exhausted  treasury  was  yet  importunate,  and 
ministers  turned  their  covetous  eyes  upon  the  bountiful  products  of 
American  industry  as  their  last  hope. 

We  have  already  observed  the  effects  of  wrrits  of  assistance,  and 
the  real  impotency  of  the  imperial  government  in  enforcing  its  arbi 
trary  revenue  laws  contrary  to  the  will  of  the  colonists.  These 
laws,  enacted  from  time  to  time  during  a  hundred  years,  had  shut 
their  ports  against  all  but  English  vessels,  compelled  the  colonists 
to  export  only  to  countries  belonging  to  the  British  crown,  and 
allowed  them  to  import  goods  from  England  only,  and  in  English 
ships.  They  had  also  laid  a  heavy  hand  upon  domestic  industry  by 
prohibitions  which  discouraged  manufactures.  In  a  wrord,  the  policy 
of  Great  Britain  toward  her  colonies  had  been  a  restrictive  commer 
cial  one  from  the  beginning,  and  alienated  the  affections  of  the 
Americans  from  the  mother-country. 

A  crisis  now  approached,  and  the  political  events  which  succeeded 
the  peace  of  1763  introduced  Washington  to  a  broader  and  more 
important  field  of  action.  The  current  of  transition  from  the  quiet 
of  his  home  at  Mount  Yernon  to  the  struggles  of  that  grand  arena 
where  the  prizes  of  nations  are  contended  for,  was  gradual  —  almost 
imperceptible — in  its  flow,  but  steady  and  powerful.  He  was  keenly 
alive  to  everything  concerning  the  honor  of  his  country,  and  he  saw 
with  regret  and  alarm  the  rapid  growth  in  England  of  the  idea  of 
absolute  colonial  subserviency.  He  perceived  with  indignation,  what 
Pitt  afterward  so  happily  expressed,  that  "-even  the  chimney-sweep 
ers  of  the  streets  talked  boastingly  of  their  subjects  in  America ;" 
and  when  the  admiralty  enjoined  all  naval  commanders  —  men 
whose  authoritative  habits  made  them  unfit  agents  for  such  a  ser- 

21 


322  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [17C4. 

vice  against  such  a  people  —  to  execute  the  revenue  laws,  he  felt 
that  a  deliberate  blow  was  levelled  against  the  best  interests  of  his 
country.  Vessels  engaged  in  contraband  trade  were  seized  and  con 
fiscated  by  these  men,  and  the  colonial  commerce  with  the  West 
Indies  was  almost  annihilated.  "  They  fell,"  wrote  Burke,  "  so  indis 
criminately  on  all  sorts  of  contraband,  or  supposed  contraband,  that 
some  of  the  most  valuable  branches  of  trade  were  driven  violently 
from  our  ports,  which  caused  a  universal  consternation  throughout 
the  colonies." 

Unable  to  resist  these  measures  by  force,  the  colonists  adopted 
the  most  efficient  plan  of  retaliation  in  their  power.  They  resolved 
not  to  purchase  British  fabrics;  and  they  commenced  the  home 
manufacture  of  clothing  very  extensively.  This  measure  touched 
the  English  people  in  a  tender  point,  the  commercial  interest.  The 
demand  for  British  goods  in  the  colonies  fell  off  immensely,  and  the 
English  merchants  became,  through  self-interest,  the  powerful  advo 
cates  of  the  Americans. 

And  now  a  bolder  scheme  of  taxation  was  proposed.  Bute  re 
signed  the  premiership  in  the  spring  of  1763,  and  was  succeeded  by 
George  Grenville,  who,  for  awhile,  had  fought  shoulder  to  shoulder 
with  Pitt  in  the  maintenance  of  his  wise  policy,  but  had  deserted 
him  to  hold  the  office  of  chancellor  of  the  exchequer  under  the 
Scotch  earl.  He  was  an  honest  statesman,  but  his  vision  of  duty 
did  not  extend  beyond  the  line  of  official  routine,  and  he  was  un 
able  to  estimate  the  results  of  untried  measures.  Upon  him  was 
laid  the  necessity  of  replenishing  an  exhausted  treasury.  The  Eng 
lish  people  had  been  heavily  taxed  already,  and  were  loudly  com 
plaining  of  the  burden.  Grenville  feared  to  increase  its  weight,  and 
he  looked  to  the  American  colonies  for  relief.  He  conceived  the 
right  to  draw  a  revenue  from  them  to  be  undoubted ;  and  Parlia 
ment,  by  a  formal  vote,  confirmed  the  opinion.  Thus  supported  by 
his  conscience  and  the  voice  of  the  nation's  representatives,  he  sub 
mitted  to  the  house  of  commons,  on  the  fifth  of  May,  1764,  the 
famous  stamp-act.  He  then  assured  the  colonial  agents  in  England 
that  he  would  not  urge  its  adoption  at  that  session,  but  leave  the 


Mr.  32.]  PROPOSED  STAMP-DUTIES.  323 

subject  open  for  deliberation.  He  required  the  colonies  to  pay  into 
the  national  treasury  a  million  of  dollars  a  year  in  some  shape,  and 
he  agreed  to  leave  it  to  them  to  devise  a  better  measure  than  the 
stamp-duty,  if  possible. 

A  stamp-duty  for  revenue  was  not  an  idea  original  with  Grenville. 
It  had  been  promulgated  almost  forty  years  before.  Sir  William 
Keith  had  advised  the  policy  as  early  as  1728.  During  the  admin 
istration  of  Kobert  Walpole,  in  1732,  a  stamp-duty  was  proposed, 
but  that  sagacious  statesman  said,  "  I  will  leave  the  taxation  of 
America  to  some  of  my  successors  who  have  more  courage  than  I 
have."  Such  a  measure  was  urged  by  the  London  merchants  a 
little  later ;  and  the  recommendation  of  Douglas,  a  writer  on  British 
America  in  1750,  to  levy  a  stamp-duty  on  all  legal  writings  and  in 
struments,  was  regarded  favorably  by  Doctor  Franklin,  as  just  and 
equitable.  Governor  Sharpe,  of  Maryland,  was  in  favor  of  it  in 
1754;  and,  in  1755,  Lieutenant-Governor  Delancy  spoke  in  com 
mendation  of  such  a  method  for  raising  a  revenue,  in  the  New  York 
assembly.  In  1756,  Governor  Shirley,  of  Massachusetts,  recom 
mended  Parliament  to  authorize  a  stamp-tax,  and  it  was  proposed 
to  Pitt  in  1757.  That  enlightened  statesman  would  not  listen  to  it, 
for,  like  Walpole,  he  preferred  to  draw  money  into  the  imperial 
treasury  by  the  exercise  of  a  liberal  commercial  policy  toward  the 
Americans. 

When  intelligence  of  Grenville's  scheme  reached  the  colonies,  the 
popular  feeling  was  aroused  against  it  with  great  intensity.  The 
colonial  assemblies  deliberated  upon  the  matter,  and  it  was  the  gen 
erally-expressed  sentiment  of  the  people  that  Parliament  had  no 
right  to  tax  them,  unless  they  were  permitted  to  have  representa 
tives  in  the  national  legislature.  Then  was  boldly  enunciated  that 
grand  postulate  that  TAXATION  WITHOUT  REPRESENTATION  is  TYRANNY. 
This  became  the  fundamental  doctrine  of  their  political  creed ;  this 
was  the  touchstone  of  all  parliamentary  measures ;  this  was  the 
strong  rock  upon  which  the  patriots  of  the  Revolution,  which  soon 
broke  out,  anchored  their  faith  and  hope.  The  press  and  the  pulpit 
denounced  the  scheme  as  a  wicked  one ;  the  people  met  in  excited 


324  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1765. 

assemblies  and  boldly  expressed  their  indignation;  associations 
called  sSom  of  Liberty  appeared  in  every  colony,  pledged  to  oppose 
the  practical  workings  of  the  measure  ;  petitions  and  remonstrances 
were  sent  to  the  king  and  Parliament  by  different  colonies,  and 
Doctor  Franklin,  as  leader  of  the  agents  for  Pennsylvania,  Con 
necticut,  and  South  Carolina,  appeared  in  London  to  deprecate  the 
measure,  for  he  now  saw,  that  what  appeared  to  him  harmless  fifteen 
years  before,  was  a  bared  rod  of  oppression  in  a  strong  hand. 

The  stamp-act  was  called  up  in  the  house  of  commons  early 
in  February,  1765.  William  Pitt  was  there,  and  he  opposed  it 
with  all  his  might.  In  the  warmth  of  the  debate,  Grenville,  ad 
dressing  Mr.  Pitt  in  reference  to  the  fact,  that  government  knew 
not  where  to  levy  another  tax,  said :  "  Why  does  he  not  tell  ns 
where  we  can  levy  another  tax?"  and  repeated  with  emphasis, 
"  Let  him  tell  me  where  —  only  tell  me  where  !"  Pitt,  though  not 
much  given  to  joking,  hummed,  in  the  words  of  a  popular  song, 
"  Gentle  shepherd,  tell  me  where !"  The  house  burst  into  a  roar  of 
laughter,  and  christened  Grenville,  "the  gentle  shepherd."*  The 
measure  was  strongly  denounced  by  Barre,  the  brave  soldier  who 
stood  by  Wolfe  in  the  trenches  at  Louisburg,  and  on  the  Plains  of 
Abraham.  He  taunted  the  house  with  its  ignorance  of  American 
affairs.  This  taunt  called  to  his  feet  Charles  Townshend,  who 
prided  himself  upon  his  extensive  knowledge  of  America  and 
Americans.  After  speaking  of  the  equity  of  the  stamp- tax,  he 
said :  "  And  now,  will  these  American  children,  planted  by  our  care, 
nourished  up  by  our  indulgence  to  a  degree  of  strength  and  opu 
lence,  and  protected  by  our  arms,  grudge  to  contribute  their  mite 
to  relieve  us  from  the  heavy  burden  under  which  we  lie  ?"  Barre 
instantly  replied,  his  eyes  flashing  with  indignation — "  They  planted 
by  your  care !  No ;  your  oppression  planted  them  in  America. 
They  fled  from  your  tyranny  to  a  then  uncultivated,  inhospitable 
country,  where  they  exposed  themselves  to  almost  all  the  hardships 
to  which  human  nature  is  liable —  They  nourished  up  by  your  in 
dulgence  !  They  grew  by  your  neglect  of  them.  As  soon  as  you 

*  Pictorial  History  of  the  Reign  of  George  the  Third,  i.  34. 


L 


MT.  33.]  PASSAGE  OF  THE  STAMP-ACT.  325 

began  to  care  about  them,  that  care  was  exercised  in  sending  per 
sons  to  rule  them  in  one  department  and  another,  who  were,  per 
haps,  the  deputies  of  deputies  to  some  members  of  this  house,  sent 
to  spy  out  their  liberties,  to  misrepresent  their  actions,  and  to  prey 
upon  them ....  They  protected  by  your  arms !  They  have  nobly 
taken  up  arms  in  your  defence ;  have  exercised  a  valor  amid  their 
constant  and  laborious  industry,  for  the  defence  of  a  country  whose 
frontier  was  drenched  in  blood,  while  its  interior  parts  yielded  all  its 
little  savings  to  your  emolument." 

Others  denounced  the  bills,  in  strong  terms,  but  after  a  "  languid 
debate,"  as  Burke  says,  which  continued  until  March,  it  passed 
the  house,  after  a  single  division,  by  a  majority  of  two  hundred 
and  fifty  to  fifty.  On  the  twenty-second  of  March,  the  king 
gladly  gave  his  assent  to  the  bill  by  signing  it,  and  the  famous 
stamp-act — the  entering  wedge  for  the  dismemberment  of  the 
British  empire  —  became  a  law.*  That  night  Doctor  Franklin 
wrote  to  his  friend,  Charles  Thomson,  who  afterward  became  the 
permanent  secretary  of  the  Continental  Congress :  "  We  might  as 
well  have  hindered  the  sun's  setting :  that  we  could  not  do.  But 
since  'tis  down,  my  friend,  and  it  may  be  long  before  it  rises  again, 
let  us  make  as  good  a  night  of  it  as  we  can.  We  may  still  light 
candles.  Frugality  and  industry  will  go  a  great  way  toward  indem 
nifying  us.  Idleness  and  pride  tax  with  a  heavier  hand  than  kings 
and  parliaments ;  if  we  can  get  rid  of  the  former,  we  may  easily 
bear  the  latter."f 

*  It  provided  that  every  skin,  or  piece  of  vellum,  or  parchment,  or  sheet,  or  piece  of  paper  used 
for  legal  purposes,  such  as  bills,  bonds,  notes,  leases,  policies  of  insurance,  marriage  licenses,  and  a 
great  many  other  documents,  in  order  to  be  held  valid  in  courts  of  law,  was  to  be  stamped,  and  sold 
to  public  officers  appointed  for  that  purpose,  at  prices  which  levied  a  stated  tax  on  every  such  docu 
ment.  The  Dutch  had  used  stamped  paper  for  some  time,  and  it  was  familiar  to  English  merchants 
and  companies,  but  in  America  it  was  almost  wholly  unknown.  The  stamps  were  upon  blue  paper, 
and  contained  a  representation  of  the  national  arms  of  Great  Britain,  together  with  the  value  of  the 
particular  stamp.  This  was  attached  to  one  corner  of  the  document.  For  a  picture  and  descrip 
tion  of  the  famous  stamp,  see  Lossing's  Pictorial  Field-Book  of  the  Revolution  :  Supplement  ii.  671. 

t  Vide  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States,  v.  306,  note. 


WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [,765. 


CHAPTER   XXXI. 

THE     KING    AND    PARLIAMENT EFFECTS    OF    THE    STAMP-ACT     IN    AMERICA PAT 
RICK    HENRY    IN     THE    VIRGINIA    ASSEMBLY HIS     REBELLIOUS    RESOLUTIONS 

WASHINGTON  IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  BURGESSES HIS  OPINION  OF  THE  STAMP-ACT 

MASSACHUSETTS  CIRCULAR VIRGINIA  ASSEMBLY  DISSOLVED COLONIAL  CON 
GRESS OPPOSITION  OF  THE  PEOPLE STAMP  DISTRIBUTORS DOMESTIC  MAN 
UFACTURES FRANKLIN  BEFORE  A  COMMITTEE  OF  PARLIAMENT REPEAL  OF 

THE  STAMP-ACT JOY  OF  THE  PEOPLE WASHINGTON'S  OPINION HIS  RELI 
GIOUS  VIEWS POHICK  CHURCH. 

THE  passage  of  the  stamp-act  and  its  ratification  by  the  king, 
present  one  of  those  strange  chapters  in  history  which  disturb  our 
faith  in  human  sagacity  and  forecast.  But  few  earnest  voices,  in 
or  out  of  Parliament,  were  raised  against  the  measure ;  and  Doctor 
Franklin,  who  welJ  know  the  temper  of  the  Americans,  was  almost 
the  only  man  in  England  who  seriously  believed  that  they  would 
resist  it,  notwithstanding  it  struck  at  one  of  the  dearest  rights  of 
Britons — trial  by  jury.*  And  contemporary  writers  inform  us,  that 
when  the  king  signed  that  instrument,  he  was  laboring  under  the 
first  paroxysms  of  that  malady  of  the  brain  which,  in  after-years, 
unfitted  him  for  the  duties  of  the  throne.  It  was  the  hand  of  an 
insane  man  that  gave  vitality  to  the  measure  which,  above  all 
others,  most  powerfully  aroused  the  independent  spirit  of  the 
Americans.  The  ministry  who  were  the  sponsors  of  that  act, 
seemed  almost  as  insane  as  the  king ;  and  there  is  little  palliation 
for  their  offence  against  human  liberty,  except  the  fact  of  their 
admitted  ignorance  of  the  true  character  of  the  Americans,  and 
their  lack  of -clear  perceptions  of  right.  They  could  not,  or  would 

*  The  act  provided,  that  all  offences  against  it  could  be  tried  in  any  royal,  marine,  or  admiralty 
court  throughout  the  colonies,  however  distant  from  the  place  where  the  offence  had  been  committed. 
This  interfered  with  the  cherished  right  of  trial  by  jury. 


>ET.  33.]  VOICE  OF  PATRICK  HENRY.  327 

not  understand  the  proposition,  that  taxation  without  representation 
is  tyranny.  "  We  have  the  power  to  tax  the  Americans,  and  we 
will  tax  them,"  said  one  of  the  ministry ;  and  the  people,  provoked 
by  the  claims  of  independence  of  Parliament  set  up  by  the  colonists, 
concurred  in  the  sentiment.  Little  did  they  know  of  the  volcano 
of  mighty  energies  they  were  thus  uncapping ! 

Intelligence  of  the  passage  of  the  stamp-act  set  the  colonies  in  a 
blaze  of  excitement.  Massachusetts  and  Virginia — the  head  and 
heart  of  opposition  to  ministerial  measures,  were  foremost  and 
loudest  in  their  denunciations,  while  other  colonies,  even  those  who 
would  be  least  affected  by  the  act,  were  almost  as  conspicuous  for 
boldness  and  generous  zeal.  New  York  had  already  resented  a 
blow  at  the  independence  of  its  judiciary,  and  now  its  assembly 
opened  a  correspondence  with  those  of  other  colonies  concerning  the 
grievances  of  the  stamp-act  and  cognate  oppressive  measures.  This 
correspondence  led  to  the  proposition  for  a  general  colonial  congres?, 
put  forth  by  the  Massachusetts  assembly,  in  a  circular  letter  sent  to 
the  speakers  of  other  assemblies,  in  June,  1765.  Already  the  alarum 
bell  of  the  Revolution  had  been  sounded  by  Patrick  Henry,  in  the 
Virginia  legislature.  That  young  man,  less  than  thirty  years  of 
age,  had  but  recently  emerged  from  utter  obscurity.  He  came  like 
lightning  from  a  cloud.  His  eloquence  was  brilliant  and  meteor- 
like,  and  all  Virginia  wras  then  gazing  upon  him  in  wonder.  He 
took  his  seat  in  the  house  of  burgesses  in  the  spring  of  1765.  That 
body  was  in  session  in  the  old  capital  at  Williamsburg,  when  intel 
ligence  of  the  passage  of  the  stamp-act  reached  it.  The  members 
all  talked  boldly  in  private,  but  none  were  willing  to  act  bravely  in 
public,  until  near  the  close  of  the  session,  when  Henry,  the  young 
est  member  of  the  assembly,  and  who  had  occupied  his  seat  but  a 
few  days,  arose  in  his  place,  and  offered  a  series  of  five  resolutions 
on  the  subject  of  the  stamp-act.  These  were  drawn  up  on  a  scrap 
of  paper  torn  from  the  fly-leaf  of  an  old  copy  of  "  Coke  upon 
Lyttleton."  The  fifth  resolution,  in  which  was  summed  up  the 
essentials  of  the  four  preceding  ones,  declared  "  That  the  general 
assembly  of  the  colony  have  the  sole  right  and  power  to  levy  taxes 


328  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1765. 

and  impositions  upon  the  inhabitants  of  this  colony ;  and  that  every 
attempt  to  vest  such  power  in  any  other  person  or  persons  whatso 
ever,  other  than  the  general  assembly  aforesaid,  has  a  manifest 
tendency  to  destroy  British  as  well  as  American  freedom." 

The  effect  of  these  resolutions  upon  the  house  of  burgesses,  was 
electrical.  The  boldest  were  astonished ;  the  timid  were  alarmed  ; 
the  loyal  few  were  amazed  and  indignant.  Many  threats  were 
uttered,  and  those  who  were  willing  to  submit  to  Parliament,  abused 
Mr.  Henry  without  stint.  A  violent  debate  ensued,  and  Henry's 
genius  was  aroused  in  all  its  sublime  majesty.  Sometimes  deeply 
pathetic,  at  other  times  full  of  denunciatory  invective,  his  eloquence, 
like  thunder-peals,  shook  that  assembly.  In  the  midst  of  his  ha 
rangue,  he  summoned  warning  events  from  past  history,  and  ex 
claimed,  in  clear  bell-tones,  "Caesar  had  his  Brutus — Charles  the 
First  his  Cromwell;  and  George  the  Third — "  "Treason!"  cried  the 
excited  speaker,  Robinson ;  and  "  Treason !  treason !"  resounded 
from  every  part  of  the  house.  Henry  did  not  falter  for  a  moment. 
Rising  to  a  loftier  altitude,  and  fixing  his  beaming  eyes  upon  Rob 
inson,  he  concluded  his  sentence  with  the  words,  "  may  profit  by 
their  example.  Sir,  if  this  be  treason,  make  the  most  of  it  !"* 

When  Henry  was  seated,  Pendleton,  Bland,  Randolph,  Wythe, 
and  others,  who  afterward  became  the  boldest  and  most  ardent 
opposers  of  British  power,  arose  and  denounced  the  resolutions  as 
disloyal,  and  dangerous  to  the  public  welfare.  Their  hearts  were 
with  the  ardent  Henry,  but  they  adjudged  his  course  to  be  prema 
ture  and  injudicious.  Henry  again  took  the  floor,  and  his  eloquence, 
like  a  mountain  torrent,  seemed  to  sweep  before  it  every  obstacle 
of  opposition,  and  the  resolutions  were  adopted — the  fifth  by  a 
majority  of  only  one.  During  Henry's  absence  from  the  house, 
the  next  day,  the  resolutions  were  reconsidered  and  modified,  and 
the  fifth — the  soul  of  the  whole — was  stricken  out.  But  manu 
script  copies  were  already  on  their  way  to  other  colonies,  and  the 
timidity  of  the  Virginia  assembly  did  not  soften  their  force.  These 
formed  the  first  gauntlet  of  positive  defiance  that  was  cast  at  the 

*  Wirt's  Life  of  Patrick  Henrv. 


^T.  33.]  WASHINGTON  AND  THE  STAMP-ACT.  329 

feet  of  the  British  monarch  by  the  offended  colonists.  "The  re 
solves  of  the  assembly  of  Virginia,"  wrote  a  correspondent  of 
Secretary  Conway,  "  gave  the  signal  for  a  general  outcry  over  the 
continent,"  The  movers  and  supporters  of  them  were  applauded 
as  the  protectors  and  asserters  of  American  liberty. 

It  was  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  May  when  the  debate  on  the  stamp- 
act  occurred  in  the  Virginia  assembly.  Washington  was  then  in  his 
seat  as  a  burgess,  but  on  this,  as  on  every  other  occasion,  his  voice  was 
not  heard  in  debate.  He  was,  however,  always  vigilant,  and  seldom 
absent  from  his  place ;  and  he  never  failed  to  express  his  opinion 
by  his  vote.  While  there  is  no  record  to  show  how  he  voted  on 
the  resolutions  of  Mr.  Henry,  his  known  loyalty,  his  conciliatory 
spirit,  and  his  abundant  caution,  seems  to  render  it  probable  that 
he  voted  against  them,  as  premature.  Yet  the  fact  of  his  re-election 
by  the  people  soon  afterward,  affords  stronger  presumptive  evidence 
that  he  voted  in  the  affirmative.  No  doubt  he  sympathized  with 
the  spirit  of  the  resolutions,  and  that  the  fiery  scenes  of  that  day 
caused  the  rapid  germination  in  his  breast  of  that  patriotic  zeal 
which  made  him  go  hand  in  hand  with  Lee,  Henry,  Randolph,  and 
other  Virginians,  through  all  the  trying  preliminary  events  of  the 
war  for  independence. 

Previous  to  this  time,  Washington  seems  not  to  have  expressed 
any  positive  opinion  concerning  the  growing  disputes  between 
Great  Britain  and  her  colonies.  Now,  warmly  sympathizing  with 
his  countrymen,  he  appears  to  have  foreseen  the  inevitable  struggle, 
and  was  preparing  his  mind  for  an  active  engagement  in  it.  He  no 
longer  remained  silent,  yet  he  expressed  his  views  with  caution. 
Writing  to  his  wife's  uncle,*  in  London,  in  September,  he  said  :  "  The 
stamp-act  imposed  on  the  colonies  by  the  Parliament  of  Great 
Britain,  engrosses  the  conversation  of  the  speculative  part  of  the 
colonists,  who  look  upon  this  unconstitutional  method  of  taxation 
as  a  direful  attack  upon  their  liberties,  and  loudly  exclaim  against 
the  violation.  What  may  be  the  result  of  this,  and  of  some  other 
(I  think  I  may  add,  ill-judged)  measures,  I  will  not  undertake  to 

*  Francis  Dandridge.  —  See  Sparks's  "  Writings  of  Washington,"  ii.  342. 


330  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1765. 

determine ;  but  this  I  may  venture  to  affirm,  that  the  advantage 
accruing  to  the  mother-country  will  fall  greatly  short  of  the  expec 
tations  of  the  ministry ;  for  certain  it  is,  that  our  whole  substance 
already,  in  a  manner,  flows  to  Great  Britain,  and  that  whatsoever 
contributes  to  lessen  our  importations  must  be  hurtful  to  her  manu 
factures.  The  eyes  of  our  people  already  begin  to  be  open ;  and 
they  will  perceive  that  many  luxuries,  for  which  we  lavish  our 
substance  in  Great  Britain,  can  well  be  dispensed  with,  while  the 
necessaries  of  life  are  mostly  to  be  had  within  ourselves.  This, 
consequently,  wrill  induce  frugality,  and  be  a  necessary  incitement 
to  industry.  If  Great  Britain,  therefore,  loads  her  manufactures 
with  heavy  taxes,  will  it  not  facilitate  such  results  ?  They  will  not 
compel  us,  I  think,  to  give  our  money  for  their  exports,  whether  we 
will  or  not ;  and  I  am  certain,  that  none  of  their  traders  will  part 
with  them  without  a  valuable  consideration.  Where,  then,  is  the 
utility  of  these  restrictions? 

"  As  to  the  stamp-act,  regarded  in  a  single  view,  one  and  the  first 
bad  consequence  attending  it  is,  that  our  courts  of  judicature  must 
inevitably  be  shut  up ;  for  it  is  impossible,  or  next  to  impossible, 
under  our  present  circumstances,  that  the  act  of  Parliament  can  be 
complied  with,  were  we  ever  so  willing  to  enforce  its  execution. 
And,  not  to  say  (which  alone  would  be  sufficient)  that  we  have  not 
money  to  pay  for  the  stamps,  there  are  many  other  cogent  reasons 
which  prove  that  it  would  be  ineffectual.  If  a  stop  be  put  to  our 
judicial  proceedings,  I  fancy  the  merchants  of  Great  Britain,  trading 
to  the  colonies,  will  not  be  among  the  last  to  wish  for  a  repeal  of 
the  act."  The  prophecy  involved  in  the  last  clause  of  this  letter, 
was  speedily  fulfilled. 

The  circular  letter  of  the  Massachusetts  assembly,  proposing  a 
colonial  congress,  met  with  a  hearty  response.*  Governor  Fauquier, 

*  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  letter  : — 

BOSTON,  June,  1765. 

"  SIR  —  The  house  of  representatives  of  this  province,  in  the  present  session  of  general  court, 
have  unanimously  agreed  to  propose  a  meeting,  as  soon  as  may  be,  of  committees  of  the  houses  of 
representatives,  or  burgesses,  of  the  several  British  colonii*?  on  this  continent,  to  consult  together  on 
the  present  circumstances  of  the  colonies,  and  the  difficulties  to  which  they  are,  and  must  be,  reduced 
by  the  operation  of  the  acts  of  Parliament  for  levying  duties  and  taxes  on  the  colonies ;  and  to  eon- 


MT.  33.]  MEETING  OF  THE  COLONIAL  CONGRESS.  331 

who  was  really  opposed  to  the  stamp-act,  in  principle,  was,  never 
theless,  as  the  representative  of  the  king,  compelled  to  support  it. 
Therefore,  on  being  informed  of  the  action  of  the  burgesses  in  adopt 
ing  Henry's  resolutions,  he  dissolved  the  assembly  and  ordered  a  new 
election,  the  result  of  which  was  highly  satisfactory  to  the  patriots. 
The  eloquence  of  Henry  seems  to  have  touched  every  heart  in  the 
Old  Dominion;  and  everywhere  the  people  re-elected  the  friends 
of  the  resolutions,  and  filled  the  seats  of  those  opposed  to  them 
with  undoubted  patriots. 

Fauquier,  perceiving  the  complexion  of  the  new  assembly,  refused 
to  call  the  members  together  to  appoint  delegates  to  the  proposed 
colonial  congress.  The  members  elect,  confiding  in  the  wisdom 
and  patriotism  of  the  delegates  from  the  other  colonies,  signed  a 
letter  in  which  they  promised  to  acquiesce  in  any  action  that  might 
be  had.  Similar  assurances  were  given  by  those  of  New  Hamp 
shire,  North  Carolina,  and  Georgia. 

The  colonial  Congress  assembled  at  New  York,  on  Monday,  the 
seventh  day  of  October,  when  nine  of  the  thirteen  colonies  were 
represented.*  It  was  organized  by  the  election  of  Timothy  Rug- 
gles,  of  Massachusetts,  as  its  president,  and  the  appointment  of 
John  Cotton,  clerk.  The  session  continued  fourteen  days,  and  in 
three  well-written  documents,  the  grievances  and  rights  of  the  col- 

sider  of  a  general  and  united,  dutiful,  loyal,  and  humble  representation  of  their  condition  to  his 
majesty  and  to  the  Parliament,  and  to  implore  relief. 

"  The  house  of  representatives  of  this  province  have  also  voted  to  propose,  that  such  meeting-  be 
at  the  city  of  New  York,  in  the  province  of  New  York,  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  October  next,  and 
have  appointed  a  committee  of  three  of  their  members  to  attend  that  service,  with  such  as  the  other 
houses  "of  representatives,  or  burgesses,  in  the  several  colonies,  may  think  fit  to  appoint  to  meet 
them  ;  and  the  committee  of  the  house  of  representatives  of  this  province,  are  directed  to  repair  to 
the  said  New  York,  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  October  next,  accordingly  ;  if,  therefore,  your  honorable 
house  shall  agree  to  this  proposal,  it  would  be  acceptable  that  as  early  notice  of  it  as  possible,  might 
be  transmitted  to  the  speaker  of  the  house  of  representatives  of  this  province." 

*  The  following  are  the  names  of  the  delegates  : — 

Massachusetts.  —  James  Otis,  Oliver  Partridge,  Timothy  Ruggles. 

New  York.  —  Robert  R.  Livingston,  John  Cruger,  Philip  Livingston,  William  Bayard,  Leonard 
Lispenard. 

New  Jersey. — Robert  Ogden,  Hcndrick  Fisher,  Joseph  Borden. 

Rhode  Island.  —  Metcalf  Bowler,  Henry  Ward. 

Pennsylvania. — John  Dickenson,  John  Morton,  George  Bryan. 

Delaware.  —  Thomas  M'Kean,  Caesar  Rodney. 

Connecticut. — Eliphalct  Dyer,  David  Rowland,  William  S.  Johnson. 

Maryland.  —William  Murdock,  Edward  Tilghman,  Thomas  Ringgold. 

South  Carolina.  —  Thomas  Lynch,  Christopher  Gadsden,  John  Rutledge. 


332  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1765. 

onists,  a  memorial  to  Parliament  for  a  redress  of  the  former,  and  an 
acknowledgment  of  the  latter,  and  a  petition  to  the  king,  were  ably 
set  forth.  These  proceedings  were  applauded  by  all  of  the  provincial 
assemblies,  and  when  the  first  of  November  arrived  (the  appointed 
day  for  the  stamp-act  to  go  into  operation),  the  people  were  united  in 
a  strong  determination  to  resist  it.  That  day  was  observed  as  one  of 
fasting  and  mourning.  The  colors  of  vessels  were  placed  at  half-mast ; 
and  in  various  cities  there  were  funeral  processions,  and  the  tolling 
of  bells.  The  courts  were  all  closed  ;  legal  marriages  ceased  ;  ships 
remained  in  port;  and,  for  a  while,  all  business  was  suspended. 
There  was  quiet  all  over  the  land,  but  it  was  not  the  quiet  of  sub 
mission.  It  was  only  the  ominous  lull  in  the  storm,  which  was  to 
precede  more  furious  blasts.  The  people  were  only  gathering 
strength  for  more  vigorous  achievements  in  defence  of  their  rights. 
The  head  of  active  opposition  soon  appeared  on  every  side,  some 
times  in  legal  form,  and  at  others  in  the  guise  of  unlawful  violence. 
The  stamp  distributors,  or  men  appointed  by  the  crown  to  receive 
and  sell  the  odious  stamps,  were  treated  with  scorn,  and  sometimes 
with  severity.  Entirely  misapprehending  the  will  of  the  people, 
many  excellent  men  accepted  the  office,  because  it  promised  hand 
some  emoluments.  Jared  Ingersoll,  late  agent  of  Connecticut  in 
England,  came  home  with  such  appointment ;  and  on  his  arrival  at 
Boston,  early  in  August,  he  published  the  names  of  all  the  stamp 
distributors  in  America.  This  directed  the  attention  of  the  excited 
people  to  them,  and  the  popular  will  soon  made  such  decisive  man 
ifestations  of  its  contempt  for  these  men,  that  the  prudent  ones 
among  them  resigned  their  offices.  Ingersoll  did  so  gracefully,  after 
being  burned  in  effigy,  at  Norwich  ;*  but  Oliver,  of  Boston,  under 

*  Franklin  had  advised  Ingersoll  to  accept  the  office,  and  said,  "  Go  home  and  tell  your  country 
men  to  get  children  as  fast  as  they  can  :"  intimating  that  they  were  now  too  weak  to  resist  such  op 
pressive  measures,  and  that  they  ought  to  gain  strength,  by  numbers,  as  fast  as  possible. 

When  the  people  first  demanded  Ingersoll's  resignation,  he  refused  compliance,  pleading  as  an 
excuse,  that  he  awaited  the  action  of  the  general  assembly  of  Connecticut.  But  they  would  listen 
to  no  plea,  and  thinking  the  cause  "not  worth  dying  for,"  Ingersoll  yielded,  and  signed  a  paper 
which  declared  his  resignation  of  the  office.  He  was  then  compelled  to  stand  up  and  read  it  to  the 
people,  and  to  throw  up  his  hat  and  cry,  "  Liberty  and  property !"  and  give  three  cheers.  After 
dinner,  a  cavalcade  of  about  a  thousand  escorted  him  from  Wethersfield  to  Hartford.  Good  humor 
prevailed  on  the  way.  Ingersoll,  who  was  riding  in  front,  on  a  white  horse,  cried  out :  "  I  am  like 
Death  on  the  pale  horse,  in  the  Revelations,  for  '  Hell  followed  with  him.'" 


MT.  33.]  STAMP-ACT  EXCITEMENT.  333 

the  advice  of  Hutchinson,  the  chief-justice,  would  not.  Oliver  was 
hanged  in  effigy,  and  a  mob  broke  open  the  house  of  Hutchinson, 
destroyed  his  furniture,  scattered  his  plate,  ready  money,  books, 
and  manuscripts,  and  left  the  premises  a  total  wreck.  M'Evers,  at 
New  York,  fearful  of  consequences,  resigned.  Lieutenant-governor 
Golden,  who  declared  his  determination  to  receive  and  sell  the 
stamps,  was  burned  in  effigy ;  and  the  mob,  after  parading  it  with 
an  immense  placard,  inscribed  "  England's  folly  and  America's  ruin," 
made  a  bonfire  of  his  coach,  the  effigy,  and  the  wooden  railing 
around  the  bowling-green,  within  a  few  feet  of  the  gates  of  Fort 
George.  Cox,  of  New  Jersey,  resigned  ;  no  one  dared  to  accept  the 
office,  in  Philadelphia;  and  at  Annapolis,  in  Maryland,  four  or  five 
hundred  people  pulled  down  a  small  house  belonging  to  Hood,  the 
appointed  stamp-distributor,  and  he  fled  in  terror  to  New  York. 
George  Mercer,  of  Virginia,  who,  misunderstanding  the  will  of 
the  people,  had  accepted  the  office,  gladly  resigned,  and,  on  his 
arrival  at  Williamsburg,  the  bells  rang  out  merry  peals  of  joy,  the 
town  was  illuminated,  and  he  was  hailed  by  the  people  as  a  true 
patriot.  At  Wilmington  and  Edenton,  the  popular  excitement  was 
great ;  and  at  Charleston  the  voice  of  that  sturdy  patriot,  Christo 
pher  Gadsden,  was  so  menacing,  that  no  man  dared  to  receive  the 
stamps. 

More  quiet,  but  far  more  potential  measures,  were  adopted  by 
the  sober  and  substantial  inhabitants  of  the  colonies.  Merchants 
entered  into  agreements  not  to  import  goods  from  Great  Britain 
while  the  obnoxious  act  remained  a  law;  and  in  almost  every 
family  domestic  manufactures  were  commenced.  Everybody  wore 
home-made  clothing ;  and  that  wool  might  not  become  scarce,  the 
use  of  sheepflesh,  for  food,  was  discouraged.  Very  soon,  from  all 
classes  in  America,  there  went  to  the  ears  of  the  British  ministry,  a 
respectful  but  firm  protest.  The  merchants  and  manufacturers  of 
London  seconded  it  with  great  warmth,  and  thus  made  powerful, 
that  voice  was  heard  and  heeded  in  high  places. 

At  about  this  time,  Grenville  was  succeeded  in  office  by  the  more 
conciliatory  Marquis  of  Rockingharn,  and  William  Pitt  came  from 


334  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1766. 

his  retirement,  and  appeared  in  Parliament  as  the  earnest  champion 
of  the  Americans.  Then,  also,  Edmund  Burke  appeared  on  the 
same  side ;  and  during  the  stormy  debates  which  ensued  on  the 
subject  of  repealing  the  stamp-act,  he  achieved  some  of  those 
earliest  and  most  wonderful  triumphs  of  oratory,  which  established 
his  fame,  and  endeared  him  to  the  American  people.  But  more 
powerful  than  oratory  were  the  simple  words  of  Dr.  Franklin,  when 
he  was  examined  before  a  committee  of  Parliament,  on  the  subject 
of  the  stamp-act.  He  was  asked,  "  Do  you  think  the  people  of 
America  would  submit  to  the  stamp  duty,  if  it  was  moderated  ?" 
"  No,  never,"  replied  Franklin,  "  unless  compelled  by  force  of  arms." 
"What  was  the  temper  of  the  Americans  before  the  year  1763?" 
they  inquired.  "  The  best  in  the  world,"  he  answered.  "  They 
submitted  willingly  to  the  government  of  the  crown,  and  paid,  in 
their  courts,  obedience  to  acts  of  Parliament.  Numerous  as  the 
people  are  in  the  several  old  provinces,  they  cost  you  nothing  in 
forts,  citadels,  garrisons,  or  armies,  to  keep  them  in  subjection. 
They  were  governed  by  this  country  at  the  expense  of  only  a  little 
pen,  ink,  and  paper ;  they  were  led  by  a  thread.  They  had  not  only 
a  respect,  but  an  affection  for  Great  Britain  •  for  its  laws,  its  customs, 
and  manners,  and  even  a  fondness  for  its  fashions,  that  greatly  in 
creased  the  commerce.  Natives  of  Great  Britain  were  always  treated 
with  particular  regard ;  to  be  an  (  Old  England  man'  was,  of  itself,  a 
character  of  some  respect,  and  gave  a  kind  of  rank  among  us."  To 
the  naturally  succeeding  question,  "  And  what  is  their  temper  now  ?" 
Franklin  replied :  "  Oh,  very  much  altered."  "  Did  you  ever  hear 
the  authority  of  Parliament  to  make  law^s  for  America  questioned 
till  lately?"  they  asked.  "The  authority  of  Parliament,"  he  replied, 
"  was  allowed  to  be  valid  in  all  laws,  except  such  as  should  lay  in 
ternal  taxes.  It  was  never  disputed  in  laying  duties  to  regulate 
commerce."  "  If  the  act  is  not  repealed,  what  do  you  think  will  be 
the  consequences  ?"  "  A  total  loss  of  the  respect  and  affection  the 
people  of  America  bear  to  this  country,  and  of  all  the  commerce 
that  depends  on  that  respect  and  affection,"  Franklin  firmly  replied. 
Franklin's  words  were  regarded  as  oracular,  and  these,  with  the 


^ET.  34.]  STAMP-ACT  REPEALED.  335 

voices  from  America,  and  from  the  British  merchants  and  manufac 
turers,  compelled  the  ministry  to  give  way.  The  stamp-act  was  re 
pealed  on  the  eighteenth  of  March,  1766,  and  that  measure  produced 
great  joy  in  England  and  America.  The  warehouses  of  London  were 
illuminated,  and  the  shipping  in  the  Thames  was  decorated  with 
gay  flags  in  testimony  of  satisfaction.  In  America,  public  thanks 
givings,  bonfires,  and  illuminations,  attested  the  general  joy ;  and 
Pitt,  wrho  had  boldly  declared  his  conviction,  that  Parliament  had 
no  right  to  tax  the  colonies  without  their  consent,  was  hailed  as  a 
political  Messiah,  and  the  assemblies  of  New  York  and  South  Caro 
lina,  each  voted  an  appropriation  to  erect  a  statue  in  his  honor. 
New  York,  Virginia,  and  Maryland,  also  agreed  to  erect  statues  of 
the  king,  as  tokens  of  their  gratitude.  The  latter  also  ordered  a 
portrait  of  Lord  Camden ;  and  the  authorities  of  Boston  requested 
Doctor  Franklin  to  procure  full-length  portraits  of  Conway  and 
Barre,  for  Faneuil  hall.  The  Americans  delighted  to  honor  all  who 
had  been  instrumental  in  procuring  a  repeal  of  the  act.  They 
were  happy  in  the  thought  that  their  grievances  wrould  be  redressed, 
and  that  they  would  be  permitted  to  remain  free  and  loyal  subjects 
of  the  crown.  Non-importation  associations  were  dissolved,  and  a 
permanent  reconciliation  was  anticipated. 

The  repeal  of  the  stamp-act  produced  great  satisfaction  at  Mount 
Yernon.  "  The  repeal,"  Washington  wrote  to  a  friend,  "  to  whatever 
cause,  owing,  ought  much  to  be  rejoiced  at ;  for,  had  the  Parliament 
of  Great  Britain  resolved  upon  enforcing  it,  the  consequences,  I 
conceive,  would  have  been  more  direful  than  is  generally  appre 
hended,  both  to  the  mother-country  and  her  colonies.  All,  there 
fore,  wrho  were  instrumental  in  procuring  the  repeal,  are  entitled  to 
the  thanks  of  every  British  subject,  and  have  mine  cordially."  To 
another  correspondent  he  remarked,  "  I  can  not  help  observing,  that 
a  contrary  measure  would  have  introduced  very  unhappy  conse 
quences."  Speaking  of  the  friends  of  repeal  in  Parliament,  he  said, 
"  My  thanks  they  always  shall  have,  for  their  opposition  to  every 
act  of  oppression ;  and  that  act  could  be  looked  upon  in  no  other 
light,  by  every  person  who  would  view  it  in  its  proper  colors." 


336  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1766. 

While  the  great  public  questions  which  agitated  the  continent 
engaged  the  earnest  attention  of  Washington,  he  was  active  in 
every  sphere  of  social  duty,  in  his  neighborhood.  He  was  a  com 
municant  of  the  church  of  England,  and  took  a  lively  interest  in 
the  affairs  of  Truro  parish,  in  which  Mount  Vernon  was  situated. 
From  his  earliest  years,  his  conduct  had  been  subservient  to  a 
strong  religious  sentiment;  and  all  through  life  it  formed  the  basis 
of  his  majestic  moral  qualities.  "Neither  in  the  parade  of  military 
life,  nor  in  the  cares  of  civil  administration  -,  neither  in  a  state  of 
depression,  nor  amidst  the  intoxicating  sweets  of  power  and  adula 
tion,  did  he  forget  to  pay  homage  to  the  MOST  HIGH,  who  doeth 
according  to  his  will  in  the  army  of  Heaven,  and  among  the  inhab 
itants  of  earth."*  In  that  broader  view  of  the  influence  of  religion, 
which  comprehends  the  public  good  as  well  as  individual  well-being, 
he  seems  to  have  been  always  impressed  and  controlled  by  the 
sentiments  such  as  he  expressed  in  after-years,  when  he  wrote  : 
"  Of  all  the  dispositions  and  habits  which  lead  to  political  prosperity, 
religion  and  morality  are  indispensable  supports.  In  vain  would 
that  man  claim  the  tribute  of  patriotism,  who  should  labor  to  sub 
vert  these  great  pillars  of  human  happiness,  these  firmest  props  of 
the  duties  of  men  and  citizens.  The  mere  politician,  equally  with 
the  pious  man,  ought  to  respect  and  cherish  them.  A  volume  could 
not  trace  all  their  connections  with  private  and  public  felicity.  Let 
it  simply  be  asked,  '  Where  is  the  security  for  property,  for  reputa 
tion,  for  life,  if  the  sense  of  religious  obligation  desert  our  oaths, 

which  are  the  instruments  of  investigation  in  courts  of  justice  ?' 

Whatever  may  be  conceded  to  the  influence  of  refined  education 
on  minds  of  peculiar  structure,  reason  and  experience  both  forbid 
us  to  expect  that  national  morality  can  prevail,  in  exclusion  of 
religious  principle."  "  Above  all,"  said  a  contemporary,  "  he  was 
influenced  by  the  more  permanent  and  operative  principle  of  reli 
gion  ;  by  a  firm  and  active  persuasion  of  an  all-seeing,  all-powerful 
Deity ;  by  the  high  consciousness  of  future  accountability,  and  the 
assured  hope  and  prospect  of  immortality."')* 

*  Discourse  by  William  Linn,  D.  D.,  Feb.  22,  1800. 

*  Discourse  by  John  Davis,  before  the  American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences,  1 800. 


jET.  34.]  WASHINGTON'S  RELIGIOUS  INFLUENCE.  337 

Influenced  by  these  sentiments  and  convictions,  we  see  Wash 
ington  piously  reading  the  impressive  funeral  service  of  the  church 
of  England,  at  the  evening  funeral  of  Braddock ;  and  acknowledging 
in  a  letter  to  his  brother,  the  care  of  the  kind  Providence  of  God 
in  preserving  him  from  death  on  the  field  of  Monongahela.  We 
see  him  earnestly  endeavoring  to  have  chaplains  in  his  little  army 
on  the  Virginia  frontier,  and  in  his  orders,  rebuking  the  profanity  of 
his  troops;  and  in  after-years,  when  leading  the  armies  of  the 
Ee volution,  he  was  ever  solicitous  to  have  the  soldiers  subjected  to 
religious  influences  as  often  as  possible.  "  The  general  requires 
and  expects  of  all  officers  and  soldiers,  not  engaged  in  actual  duty," 
he  said,  in  one  of  his  earliest  orders  at  Cambridge,  in  1775,  "  a  punc 
tual  attendance  on  divine  service,  to  implore  the  blessings  of  Heav 
en  upon  the  means  used  for  our  safety  and  defence."  And  his 
diary,  kept  for  many  years  with  great  particularity,  shows  that  he 
rarely  omitted  attendance  upon  divine  service  on  Sunday,  though 
the  church  nearest  to  Mount  Vernon  was  seven  miles  distant. 

In  1765,  Washington  was  vestryman  of  both  Truro  and  Fairfax 
parishes.  The  place  of  worship  in  the  former  was  at  Pohick,  and 
of  the  latter  at  Alexandria.  His  influence  in  their  affairs  was  con 
trolling  and  salutary.  The  reverend  Mr.  Massey,  who  was  rector 
of  Pohick  church  for  many  years,  relates  some  circumstances 
respecting  the  location  of  that  edifice,  which  illustrates  Washing 
ton's  address  and  sagacity.  In  the  year  1764,  the  old  church  build 
ing,  which  stood  in  another  part  of  the  parish,  had  fallen  into  decay, 
and  it  was  resolved  to  erect  a  new  one.  Its  location  became  a 
matter  of  considerable  excitement  in  the  parish,  some  contending 
for  the  site  of  the  old  edifice,  and  others  for  one  nearer  the  centre 
of  the  parish,  and  more  conveniently  situated.  Among  the  latter 
was  Washington.  A  meeting  was  finally  held  to  settle  the  question. 
Washington's  neighbor  and  friend,  George  Mason,  who  led  the  party 
favorable  to  the  old  site,  made  an  eloquent  harangue,  conjuring  the 
people  not  to  desert  the  sacred  spot,  consecrated  by  the  bones  of 
their  ancestors.  It  had  a  powerful  effect,  and  it  was  thought  there 
would  not  be  a  voice  in  opposition  to  it.  Washington  then  arose, 

22 


338  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1766. 

and  drew  from  his  pocket  an  accurate  survey  which  he  had  made 
of  the  whole  parish,  in  which  was  marked  the  site  of  the  old  church, 
and  the  proposed  locality  of  the  new  one,  together  with  the  place 
of  residence  of  each  parishioner.  He  spread  this  map  before  the 
audience,  briefly  explained  it,  expressed  the  hope  that  they  would 
not  allow  their  judgments  to  be  guided  by  their  feelings,  and  sat 
down.  The  silent  argument  of  the  map  prevailed,  a  large  majority 
voted  in  favor  of  the  new  site,  and  in  1765,  Pohick  church  was 
erected.  That  venerated  edifice  was  yet  standing,  in  1857,  though 
in  a  state  of  great  dilapidation.  It  is  about  seven  miles  southwest 
of  Mount  Yernon,  upon  an  elevation  on  the  borders  of  a  forest, 
and  surrounded  by  ancient  oaks,  chestnuts,  and  pines.* 

*  When  the  writer  first  visited  Pohick  church,  in  1848,  a  large  portion  of  the  panes  of  glass  were 
broken,  freely  admitting  the  wind  and  rain,  the  bats  and  the  birds.     The  elegant  pulpit  was  marred 
by  desecrating  hands,  and  under  its  sounding-board  a  swallow  had  built  her  nest,  in  beautiful  illus 
tration  of  the  words  of  that  sweet  singer  of  Israel :   "  Yea  the  sparrow  has  found  a  home,  and  the 
swallow  a  place  for  herself,  where  she  may  lay  her  young,  even  thine  altar,  O  Lord  of  Hosts  \" 
The  law,  the  prayer,  and  the  creed,  painted  on  a  blue  ground  above  the  chancel,  were  quite  perfect. 
The  pews  were  square,  and  the  one  occupied  by  Washington  was  near  the  pulpit.     Near  it  was 
George  Mason's  and  George  William  Fairfax's,  whose  initials  were  yet  upon  them.     The  following 
is  from  the  record  book  of  Pohick  church,  quoted  from  the  original,  in  Lossing's  Pictorial  Field- 
Book  of  the  Revolution.     The  names  were  signed  at  different  times  during  the  summer  and  autumn 
of  1765:— 

"I,  A.  B.,  do  declare  that  I  will  be  conformable  to  the  Doctrine  and  Discipline  of  the  Church  of 
England  as  by  law  established. 

"  1765.     May  20th.  —  Thomas  Withers  Coffer,  Thomas  Ford,  John  Ford. 

"  19th  August.  —  Geo.  Washington,  Daniel  M'Carty,  Edward  Payne,  Thomas  Withers  Coffer, 

Thomas  Ford,  Edw.  Dulin,  John  Dalton,  Daniel  French,  Richard  Sanford,  Thos.  Shaw,  Thos. 

Wren,  Townsend  Dade,  Charles  Broadwatcr,*  J.  W.  Payne,  William  Adams. 
"20th  August.  —  G.  W.  Fairfax,  John  West,  William  Lynton,  Wm.  Gardner. 
"  16^  September.  —  Edward  Blackburn. 
"  1 7th  September.  —  George  Mason,  Charles  Henderson. 
"  October  21st. — John  Possey. 
"21st  April,  1766.  — T.  Ellzy. 

*  Captain  Broad  water  was  with  Braddock.     His  slave,  who  drove  a  provision  wngon  at  that  time,  died  in  Ohio, 
in  1849,  at  the  ae«  of  one  hundred  and  fifteen  years. 


JEx.  34.]  DECLARATORY  ACT  OF   PARLIAMENT.  339 


CHAPTEE   XXXII. 

THE    DECLARATORY  ACT PERCEPTIONS  OF    ITS    DANGEROUS  CHARACTER WASH 
INGTON'S     FOREBODINGS OTHER     OBNOXIOUS    ACTS    OF    PARLIAMENT TROOPS 

IN    THE    COLONIES ACTION  OF    THE    NEW    YORK    ASSEMBLY PITT    MADE    EARL 

OF  CHATHAM  AND  PRIME  MINISTER NEW  TAXATION  SCHEMES DISCON 
TENTS  IN  AMERICA VOICES  OF  THE  ASSEMBLIES BOLDNESS  OF  MASSACHU 
SETTS CONDUCT  OF  THE  MINISTRY COMMISSIONERS  OF  CUSTOMS RIOTOUS 

PROCEEDINGS    IN  BOSTON TRIUMPH  OF  THE    POPULAR  WILL BRITISH  TROOPS 

IN    BOSTON IRRITATION  OF    THE    PEOPLE NON-IMPORTATION  ASSOCIATIONS 

THE  OPINIONS  OF    WASHINGTON  AND  MASON  ON  THE  SUBJECT. 

THE  repeal  of  the  stamp-act  was  only  a  temporary  concession  of 
the  ministry,  to  the  popular  will.  It  was  clearly  perceived  by  Pitt 
and  others,  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  obtain  a  repeal  of  the 
act,  without,  in  some  way,  reasserting  the  right  to  absolute  control 
of  the  colonies,  for  which  Parliament  so  strenuously  contended. 
How  that  was  to  be  done  without  exhibiting  great  inconsistency, 
and  exposing  the  weakness  of  the  government,  in  presence  of  the 
opposition  in  America,  was  a  question  of  difficult  solution.  Doctor 
Franklin,  who  was  in  England  closely  watching  every  movement, 
saw  no  clear  way  in  the  matter,  and  he  expressed  his  belief  to  his 
friends  in  America,  that  the  act  would  not  be  repealed.  But  the 
sagacious  Pitt,  who  had  just  boldly  proclaimed  in  Parliament :  "  I 
rejoice  that  America  has  resisted.  Three  millions  of  people  so  dead 
to  all  the  feelings  of  liberty  as  voluntarily  to  submit  to  be  slaves, 
would  have  been  fit  instruments  to  make  slaves  of  all  the  rest,"* 
suggested  to  the  ministry  a  plan  by  which  the  obnoxious  act  might 
be  repealed,  and  yet  no  concessions  of  the  binding  power  of  Parlia 
ment  would  be  made.  They  acted  upon  his  suggestions,  and 
smoothed  the  way  for  the  repeal  of  the  stamp-act,  by  a  bill  which 

*  Charles  Fox  afterward  declared,  in  the  house  of  commons,  that,  "  The  resistance  of  the  Amer 
icans  to  the  oppression  of  the  mother-country,  has  undoubtedly  preserved  the  liberties  of  mankind." 


340  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1766. 

declared  that  the  king  and  Parliament  had  the  right  to  make  laws 
"  to  bind  the  colonies  and  people  of  America,  subjects  of  the  crown 
of  Great  Britain,  in  all  cases  whatsoever."  Notwithstanding  its 
preamble  varied  widely  from  the  suggestions  of  Pitt,*  that  states 
man  supported  the  declaratory  act,  as  it  was  called,  because  it  would 
insure  the  repeal  of  the  stamp-act.  Yet  while  thus  supporting  it, 
he  said,  "  You  have  no  right  to  tax  America.  Nevertheless,  I  assert 
the  authority  of  this  kingdom  to  be  sovereign  and  supreme  in  every 
circumstance  of  government  and  legislation,  whatsoever.  Taxation 
is  no  part  of  the  governing  or  legislative  power ;  the  taxes  are  a 

voluntary  gift  and  grant  of  the  commons  alone Here  we  give  and 

grant  what  is  our  own ;  but  it  is  unjust  and  absurd  to  suppose,  that 
we  can  give  and  grant  the  property  of  the  commons  of  America." 

Pitt's  position  was  a  delicate  one.  He  gloried  in  England's  power 
and  was  unwilling  to  abridge  it  in  the  least  degree ;  yet  his  innate 
sense  of  justice  gave  him  clear  perceptions  of  the  true  position  of 
the  Americans,  and  he  was  necessarily  their  advocate.  He  knew 
that  danger  to  their  liberties  was  involved  in  the  declaratory  act, 
and  regarded  it  only  as  a  temporary  expedient  to  avert  an  imme 
diately  impending  civil  war.  So  "the  resolution  passed  for  Eng 
land's  right  to  do  what  the  treasury  pleased  with  three  millions  of 
freemen  in  America." 

While  the  eyes  of  the  colonists  were  filled  with  tears  of  joy 
because  of  the  unexpected  repeal  of  the  stamp-act,  they  did  not  see 
the  egg  of  tyranny  which  lay  concealed  in  the  declaratory  act. 
Yet  there  were  a  few,  like  Gadsden  of  South  Carolina,  who  saw  it 
clearly,  and  hesitated  not,  on  all  proper  occasions,  to  declare  the 
public  hopes  to  be  fallacious ;  that  a  cordial  friendship  with  Great 
Britain  would  never  again  exist,  and  that  it  was  madness  on  the 
part  of  Americans  to  remit  their  vigilance,  or  relax  their  preparations 
for  a  contest  which  must  inevitably  ensue.  Washington,  also,  anx- 

*  In  all  this  matter  the  ministry  seemed  to  have  no  ideas  of  justice,  humanity,  and  fraternal  love. 
They  appeared  to  think  only  of  P^ngland's  pride  and  commercial  ambition,  and  studied  how  to  avoid 
wounding  either.  In  the  preamble  to  the  declaratory  act,  this  subserviency  to  Mammon  was  ex 
pressed  in  the  words,  "  The  continuance  of  the  said  [stamp]  act  would  be  attended  with  many  incon 
veniences,  and  may  be  productive  of  consequences  greatly  detrimental  to  the  commercial  interests  of 
these  kingdoms." 


J£T.  34.]  OTHER  OBNOXIOUS  MEASURES.  341 

ioiisly  watching  every  movement  of  the  British  ministry  from  the 
quiet  and  isolated  stand-point  of  Mount  Yernon,  had  similar  convic 
tions,  and  did  not,  on  reflection,  regard  the  repeal  of  the  Stamp-act 
as  the  harbinger  of  justice  to  the  colonies  and  permanent  reconcilia 
tion  with  Great  Britain.  "  I  can  not  perceive,"  he  wrote  to  a  friend, 
"  what  solid  triumph  of  principle  has  been  gained  by  the  repeal  of 
the  act,  while  the  tyrannical  power  of  Parliament  is  so  strongly 
asserted.  I  rejoice  that  the  act  is  repealed,  because  our  people  are 
spared  much  trouble,  and  it  is  a  concession  to  the  popular  will. 
But  I  very  much  fear,  that  out  of  the  declaratory  act  other  oppres 
sive  measures  will  proceed,  and  that  the  people  of  America  will  still 
be  held  in  bondage  if  they  submit."  The  apprehensions  of  Wash 
ington  were  just.  Within  a  few  months  afterward,  a  brood  of 
obnoxious  measures  were  hatched  from  that  egg,  which  aroused  the 
fiercest  indignation  of  the  colonists. 

A  large  portion  of  the  house  of  lords,  the  whole  bench  of  bishops, 
and  a  heavy  majority  in  the  commons,  were  favorable  to  the  em 
ployment  of  coercive  measures  toward  the  colonists.  They  were 
irritated  by  being  compelled  to  yield  to  the  necessity  of  concession, 
just  wrung  from  them,  and  the  cruelty  of  offended  tyranny  was 
excited.  First,  a  demand  was  made  upon  the  colonies,  for  restitu 
tion  to  the  crown  officers  who  had  suffered  losses  by  the  stamp-act 
riots.  This  was  just,  and  was  so  acknowledged  by  the  colonists; 
but  the  insolent  manner  in  which  Governor  Bernard,  of  Massachu 
setts,  demanded  the  settlement  of  such  claims,  caused  the  people  of 
Boston  to  flatly  refuse  to  pay  anything  until  his  haughty  tone  was 
changed  to  a  more  conciliatory  key. 

By  another  act,  Parliament  required  the  colonial  assemblies  to 
provide,  at  the  expense  of  the  people,  for  troops  that  might  be  sent 
to  America,  with  quarters,  fire,  beds,  candles,  beer,  salt,  and  vine 
gar.  The  Massachusetts  assembly  partially  complied;  but  that 
of  New  York,  pleading  inability,  begged  to  be  excused  from  ma 
king  the  necessary  appropriations.  It  was  clearly  perceived  that 
a  deep-laid  scheme  for  enslaving  the  colonies,  and  drawing  money 
from  their  coffers,  was  in  progress,  and  that  the  advent  of  troops 


342  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1766. 

would  be  the  introduction  of  a  military  despotism  to  enforce  obedi 
ence  to  all  laws,  however  obnoxious  they  might  be  to  the  Americans. 
They,  therefore,  resolved  not  to  cherish  a  viper  destined  for  their 
own  destruction. 

The  troops  came  from  Halifax,  in  June,  1766.  They  found  a 
cool  reception  in  Boston,  and  in  New  York  their  appearance  was 
the  signal  for  serious  outbreaks.  They  were  everywhere  insolent, 
and  they  met  sullen  rebuffs  from  the  inhabitants  at  every  corner. 
Parliament,  by  a  large  majority,  proceeded  to  punish  New  York  for 
its  contumacy,  by  suspending  the  powers  of  its  governor  and  assem 
bly  until  they  should  comply  with  its  requisitions  concerning  the 
troops.  This  served  to  strengthen  the  position  of  the  recusant 
province,  for  it  won  the  sympathy  of  all  the  other  colonies.  The 
despotic  act  created  alarm  and  indignation  all  over  the  land,  and 
the  words  of  Richard  Henry  Lee,  of  Virginia,  when  he  said,  "  An 
act  for  suspending  the  legislature  of  that  province  hangs  like  a 
flaming  sword  over  our  heads,  and  requires,  by  all  means,  to  be 
removed,"  found  a  warm  and  ready  response  in  the  hearts  of  the 
whole  people. 

At  about  this  time,  the  Rockingham  cabinet  was  suddenly  dis 
solved,  and  Pitt,  just  created  earl  of  Chatham,  was  called  to  the 
head  of  affairs,  as  prime-minister.  His  cabinet  was  a  curious  medley 
of  politicians,  brought  together,  at  this  crisis,  by  a  seeming  neces 
sity.*  Had  the  general  conduct  of  affairs  been  in  his  own  hands, 
as  it  was  eight  or  nine  years  before,  no  doubt  things  would  have 
gone  on  well.  But  others  had  their  hands  upon  the  crank  of  the 
government  machinery,  and  Chatham  was  frequently  called  away 

*  "  He  made  an  administration  so  checkered  and  speckled,"  said  Burke ;  "  he  put  together  a 
piece  of  joinery  so  crossly  indented  and  whimsically  dove-tailed ;  a  cahinet  so  variously  inlaid  ;  such 
a  piece  of  diversified  mosaic  ;  such  a  tcsselated  pavement  without  cement ;  here  a  bit  of  black  stone, 
and  there  a  bit  of  white  ;  patriots  and  courtiers  ;  king's  friends  and  republicans  ;  whigs  and  tories  ; 
treacherous  friends  and  open  enemies ;  that  it  was,  indeed,  a  very  curious  show,  but  untidy,  unsafe 
to  touch,  and  unsure  to  tread  upon.  The  colleagues  whom  he  had  assorted  at  the  same  boards 
stared  at  each  other,  and  were  obliged  to  ask,  '  Sir,  your  name  ?'  —  '  Sir,  you  have  the  advantage  of 
me.'  — '  Mr.  Such-a-one,  I  ask  a  thousand  pardons.'  I  venture  to  say  it  did  so  happen,  that  persons 
had  a  single  office  divided  between  them,  who  had  never  spoken  to  each  other  in  their  lives  until  they 
found  themselves,  they  knew  not  how,  pigging  together,  heads  and  points,  in  the  same  truckle- 
bed." —  Speech  on  American  Taxation. 


&T.  35.]  TAXATION  SCHEMES.  343 

from  duty  by  severe  attacks  of  gout,  which  kept  the  great  orator 
confined  at  Hayes,  his  country-seat  in  Kent.  It  was  during  one  of 
these  attacks  of  illness  that  Charles  Townshend,  who  was  Chatham's 
chancellor  of  the  exchequer,  coalesced  with  Grenville  in  bringing 
new  taxation  schemes  before  Parliament.  These  were  matured, 
and  in  June,  1767,  a  bill  was  passed  for  levying  duties  upon  tea, 
glass,  paper,  painter's  colors,  etcetera,  that  should  be  imported  into 
the  colonies.  Another  bill  became  a  law,  early  in  July,  which  pro 
vided  for  the  establishment  of  a  board  of  trade  in  the  colonies, 
independent  of  colonial  legislation,  and  for  creating  resident  com 
missioners  of  customs  to  enforce  the  revenue  laws.  Then,  soon 
afterward,  the  disabling  act  concerning  the  New  York  assembly, 
already  mentioned,  was  passed.  There  was  a  provision  in  the  act 
relative  to  the  quartering  of  troops  in  America,  more  odious  than 
all  others.  In  addition  to  the  authorization  of  a  standing  army  in 
the  colonies,  it  enabled  the  crown,  by  sign  manual,  to  establish  a 
general  civil  list  throughout  every  province,  fixing  the  salaries  of 
governors,  judges,  and  other  officers,  such  salary  to  be  paid  by  the 
crown.  Thus  the  executive  and  judicial  officers,  from  whom  the 
inhabitants  were  to  expect  good  government,  and  the  righteous 
administration  of  laws,  were  made  entirely  independent  of  the 
people,  and  became,  in  fact,  mere  hireling  creatures  of  the  crown. 

These  direct  blows  at  popular  liberty,  and  these  taxation  schemes, 
produced  an  excitement  in  the  colonies,  almost  equal,  in  intensity, 
to  that  created  by  the  stamp-act.  The  colonial  assemblies  uttered 
bold  protests ;  new  non-importation  associations  were  formed ;  pam 
phlets,  newspapers,  and  the  pulpit,  put  forth  inflammatory  appeals 
to  the  people,  defining  their  rights,  and  urging  them  to  united 
resistance  ;  and  early  in  the  year  1768,  almost  every  colonial  assem 
bly  had  spoken  out  boldly,  and  expressed  its  conviction  that  Parlia 
ment  possessed  no  right  to  tax  the  colonies.  These  expressions 
were  in  response  to  a  circular  sent  to  the  several  assemblies  by 
Massachusetts,  in  February  of  that  year,  asking  them  to  co-operate 
in  obtaining  a  redress  of  grievances,  and  maintaining  the  liberties 
of  America.  This  circular  greatly  offended  the  ministers,  and  Lord 


344  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [17G8. 

Hillsborough,  the  colonial  secretary,  sent  instructions  to  Governor 
Bernard  to  call  upon  the  assembly  of  Massachusetts  to  rescind  its 
resolutions,  and  in  the  event  of  non-compliance,  to  dissolve  that 
body.  This  very  requisition  was  considered  an  evidence  of  the  inten 
tions  of  the  government  to  enslave  the  colonists ;  and  when  it  came 
up  for  debate,  the  eloquence  of  the  fiery  Otis,  then  a  member  of  the 
Massachusetts  assembly,  was  heard.  "When  Lord  Hillsborough 
knows,"  said  Otis,  "  that  we  will  not  rescind  our  act,  he  should  apply 
to  Parliament  to  rescind  theirs.  Let  Britons  rescind  their  measures, 
or  they  are  lost  for  ever."  With  half  treasonable  words  like 
these,  he  harangued  the  assembly  for  nearly  an  hour,  and  then  the 
house,  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote,  resolved  not  to  rescind,  and 
passed  resolutions  denunciatory  of  this  attempt  of  a  minister  to 
arrest  free  discussion  and  expression  of  opinion.  These  sentiments 
were  embodied  in  a  written  answer  to  the  governor,  and  elicited 
the  commendation  and  sympathy  of  the  other  colonies.  Legisla 
tures  were  soon  dissolved  by  the  royal  governors,  because  of  their 
complicity  with  the  seditious  assembly  of  Massachusetts,  and  at  the 
opening  of  1768,  the  political  firmament  in  America  was  filled  with 
abundant  forebodings  of  a  great  tempest. 

The  British  ministry,  ignorant  and  careless  concerning  the  temper 
of  the  Americans,  utterly  disregarded  the  portentous  warnings 
which  every  vessel  from  the  New  World  brought  to  their  ears.  Not 
doubting  the  omnipotency  of  the  military  force  which  they  had 
determined  to  employ,  they  became  regardless  of  even  the  forms 
of  justice,  and  began  to  treat  the  Americans  as  rebellious  subjects 
rather  than  as  free  British  brethren.  This  was  the  fatal  rock  upon 
which  they  ran  the  ship  of  state,  to  its  great  and  lasting  damage. 

A  new  scene  in  the  drama  now  opened.  The  new  commissioners 
of  customs  arrived  in  May,  and  they  were  regarded  with  great 
contempt,  as  instruments  of  oppression.  Their  haughty  bearing 
and  insolent  words  increased  the  detestation  of  the  people,  and  it 
was  difficult  for  the  sober  citizens  to  restrain  the  more  ignorant  and 
excitable  portion  of  the  community  from  committing  personal  vio 
lence  upon  them. 


jET.  36.]  PATRIOTISM  TRIUMPHANT.  345 

The  proceedings  of  the  commissioners,  on  the  arrival  at  Boston, 
of  a  sloop  belonging  to  the  wealthy  merchant,  John  Hancock,  who 
was  one  of  the  public  leaders  in  Massachusetts,  produced  a  serious 
outbreak,  which  resulted  in  the  triumph  of  the  popular  will.  The 
vessel  was  laden  with  Madeira  wine.  Payment  of  duties  upon  it 
was  refused,  and  the  commissioners  seized  the  sloop.  When  the 
fact  became  generally  known,  a  great  concourse  of  citizens  appeared, 
and  speedily  became  a  mob.  They  assailed  the  commissioners, 
damaged  their  offices,  and  dragging  a  customhouse  boat  through 
the  town,  they  burned  it  upon  the  common.  The  commissioners, 
failing  to  receive  aid  or  protection  from  the  alarmed  governor,  fled 
for  safety  to  Castle  William,  situated  upon  an  island  in  the  harbor, 
three  miles  from  Boston,  where  a  company  of  British  artillery  was 
stationed. 

Governor  Bernard,  perplexed  by  fear  and  indecision,  unwisely 
invited  General  Gage,  then  in  command  of  the  British  troops  in 
America,  to  bring  soldiers  to  Boston  to  overawe  the  inhabitants. 
When  this  invitation  became  known  to  the  people,  they  were 
greatly  irritated.  A  public  meeting  was  held  in  Faneuil  hall,  and 
James  Otis,  Samuel  Adams,  John  Hancock,  and  John  Adams,  were 
appointed  to  wait  upon  the  governor,  and  ascertain  whether  the 
report  was  true.  The  governor  answered  in  the  affirmative,  but  his 
usually  haughty  tone  was  changed  to  one  of  courtesy  in  the  pres 
ence  of  those  determined  popular  leaders.  Mistaking  the  true 
character  of  those  men,  he  attempted  to  bribe  them  by  the  gifts  of 
official  station.  He  presented  Hancock  with  a  commission  as  mem 
ber  of  his  council :  that  patriot  tore  the  parchment  into  shreds  in 
the  presence  of  the  people.  He  offered  the  lucrative  place  of 
advocate-general  in  the  court  of  admiralty  to  John  Adams:  the 
proffered  patronage  was  rejected  with  disdain.  The  governor  also 
approached  that  sturdy  representative  of  the  puritans — that  perfect 
model  of  disinterested  patriotism — Samuel  Adams,  but  found  him, 
though  poor  in  purse,  as  Hutchinson,  on  another  occasion  said,  "  of 
such  an  obstinate  and  inflexible  disposition,  that  he  could  never  be 
conciliated  by  any  gift  whatsoever." 


346  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1768. 

The  summer  wore  away,  and  on  a  quiet  Sabbath  morning,  toward 
the  close  of  September,  a  British  fleet  from  Halifax  cast  anchor  in 
Boston  harbor,  and  two  regiments  of  troops,  seven  hundred  in 
number,  were  debarked.  They  landed  under  cover  of  the  cannon 
of  the  ships-of-war,  and  with  charged  muskets,  fixed  bayonets, 
drums  beating,  and  colors  flying,  they  marched  to  the  common  (for 
the  people  refused  to  provide  quarters  for  them),  with  all  the  parade 
of  a  victorious  army  entering  a  conquered  city.  Some  pitched 
their  tents  on  the  common ;  others,  by  the  governor's  orders,  were 
quartered  in  the  statehouse ;  and  others  in  Faneuil  hall.  Religion, 
popular  freedom,  patriotism,  were  all  outraged,  and  the  cup  of  the 
people's  indignation  was  full.  Mutual  hatred,  deep  and  abiding, 
was  engendered  between  the  citizens  and  the  soldiers,  and  the  terms 
rebel  and  iyraixt  were  daily  bandied  between  them.  The  colonists, 
from  the  St.  Croix  to  the  St.  Mary,  were  aroused  by  this  indignity, 
for  they  saw  their  own  fate  foreshadowed  by  that  of  the  people  of 
Massachusetts,  and  they  were  taught  the  terrible  but  necessary 
lesson,  that  armed  resistance  must  oppose  armed  oppression. 

Far  removed  from  these  scenes  of  commotion,  yet  deeply  sympa 
thizing  with  those  who  were  immediately  engaged  in  them,  Wash 
ington  had  not,  up  to  this  time,  appeared  in  public  as  a  partisan, 
but  had  quietly  pursued  his  rural  labors  and  sports  on  the  banks 
of  the  Potomac,  when  not  in  his  seat  in  the  house  of  burgesses. 
"Devoid  of  oratorical  powers,"  says  an  eminent  British  writer,* 
"tranquil,  sedate,  prudent,  dignified,  and  reserved,  he  w\as  little 
qualified  by  genius  or  habit  to  make  a  brilliant  figure  as  a  provin 
cial  politician,  and  he  waited  the  development  of  a  grander  scene 
of  counsel  and  action,  more  adapted  to  the  illustration  of  his  majes 
tic  wisdom  and  superior  sense."  But  now  the  time  had  arrived 
when  it  became  the  imperative  duty  of  every  man  of  influence  to 
embark  boldly  upon  the  current  of  political  affairs,  and  Washington 
did  not  hesitate  for  a  moment. 

The  engine  of  non-importation  agreements,  which  worked  so 
powerfully  against  the  stamp-act,  was  now  put  in  motion  with 

*  Graham,  Colonial  History  of  the  United  States,  ii.,  417. 


MT.  36  ]  WASHINGTON  AND  THE  LEAGUE.  347 

increased  energy.  During  the  winter  and  spring  of  1769,  these 
agreements,  called  associations,  became  general  throughout  the  colo 
nies,  under  the  sanction  of  the  assemblies.  Those  who  signed  them 
were  bound  not  to  purchase  or  use  the  manufactures  of  Great 
Britain,  and  other  goods  usually  exported  from  that  country,  except 
in  cases  of  the  most  urgent  necessity,  during  a  specified  time,  unless 
the  obnoxious  laws  were  repealed. 

Just  before  the  assembling  of  the  Virginia  legislature,  in  the 
spring  of  1769,  Washington  received  from  Doctor  Eoss,  of  Bladens- 
burg,  in  Maryland,  sundry  papers,  which  contained  the  resolves  and 
general  proceedings  of  the  merchants  of  Philadelphia,  respecting 
these  associations.  On  the  fifth  of  April  he  communicated  them  to 
George  Mason,  his  friend  and  neighbor,  of  Gunston  hall,  and  asked 
his  opinion  upon  the  subject.  In  his  letter  accompanying  the 
package,  Washington  declared  his  own  sentiments  with  great  en 
ergy  and  decision.  "  At  a  time,"  he  wrote,  "  when  our  lordly  mas 
ters  in  Great  Britain  will  be  satisfied  with  nothing  less  than  the 
deprivation  of  American  freedom,  it  seems  highly  necessary  that 
something  should  be  done  to  avert  the  stroke,  and  maintain  the 
liberty  which  we  have  derived  from  our  ancesters.  But  the  manner 
of  doing  it  to  answer  the  purpose  effectually,  is  the  point  in  ques 
tion.  That  no  man  should  scruple,  or  hesitate  a  moment,  to  use 
arms  in  defence  of  so  valuable  a  blessing,  is  clearly  my  opinion. 
Yet  arms,  I  would  beg  leave  to  add,  should  be  the  last  resource,  the 
dernier  resort.  We  have  already,  it  is  said,  proved  the  inefficacy  of 
addresses  to  the  throne,  and  remonstrances  to  Parliament.  How 
far,  then,  their  attention  to  our  rights  and  privileges  is  to  be  awa 
kened  or  alarmed,  by  starving  their  trade  and  manufactures,  remains 
to  be  tried. 

"  The  northern  colonies  it  appears,"  he  continued,  "  are  endeavor 
ing  to  adopt  this  scheme.  In  my  opinion  it  is  a  good  one,  and  must 
be  attended  with  salutary  effects,  provided  it  can  be  carried  pretty 
generally  into  execution.  But  to  what  extent  it  is  practicable  to 
do  so,  I  will  not  take  upon  me  to  determine.  That  there  will  be 
a  difficulty  attending  the  execution  of  it  everywhere,  from  clashing 


348  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1769 

interests,  and  selfish,  designing  men,  ever  attentive  to  their  own 
gain,  and  watchful  of  every  turn  that  will  assist  their  lucrative 
views,  can  not  be  denied ;  and  in  the  tobacco-colonies,  where  the 
trade  is  so  diffused,  and  in  a  manner  wholly  conducted  by  factors 
for  their  principals  at  home,*  these  difficulties  are  certainly  en 
hanced,  but  I  think  not  insurmountably  increased,  if  the  gentlemen, 
in  their  several  counties,  will  be  at  some  pains  to  explain  matters 
to  the  people,  and  stimulate  them  to  cordial  agreements  to  purchase 
none  but  certain  enumerated  articles  out  of  any  of  the  stores,  after  a 
definite  period,  and  neither  import  nor  purchase  any  themselves 

"  The  more  I  consider  a  scheme  of  this  sort,  the  more  ardently  I 
wish  success  to  it,  because  I  think  there  are  private  as  well  as  public 
advantages  to  result  from  it — the  former  certain,  however  pre 
carious  the  other  may  prove.  In  respect  to  the  latter,  I  have 
always  thought,  that  by  virtue  of  the  same  power  which  assumes 
the  right  of  taxation,  the  Parliament  may  attempt,  at  least,  to 
restrain  our  manufactures,  especially  those  of  a  public  nature,  the 
same  equity  and  justice  prevailing  in  the  one  case  as  the  other,  it 
being  no  greater  hardship  to  forbid  my  manufacturing,  than  it  is  to 
order  me  to  buy  goods  loaded  with  duties,  for  the  express  purpose 
of  raising  a  revenue." 

After  observing  that  extravagant  and  improvident  living  had 
impoverished  many,  very  many,  and  caused  the  sale  of  a  large 
number  of  estates  for  the  benefit  of  creditors,  Washington  re 
marked  :  "  A  scheme  of  this  sort  will  contribute  more  effectually 
than  any  other  that  can  be  devised,  to  extricate  the  country  from 
the  distress  it  at  present  labors  under,  I  most  firmly  believe,  if  it 
can  be  generally  adopted.  And  I  can  see  but  one  class  of  people, 
the  merchants  excepted,  who  will  not,  or  ought  not,  to  wish  well  to 
the  scheme,  namely:  they  who  live  genteelly  and  hospitably  on 
clear  estates.  Such  as  these,  were  they  not  to  consider  the  valuable 

*  England  is  here  meant  by  "  home."  In  quoting  these  remarks,  Irving,  in  his  Life  of  Wash 
ington,  says  :  "  A  single  word  in  the  passage  cited  from  Washington's  letter,  evinces  the  chord 
which  still  vibrated  in  the  American  bosom  :  he  incidently  speaks  cf  England  as  home.  It  was  the 
familiar  term  with  which  she  was  usually  indicated  by  those  of  English  descent;  and  the  writer  of 
these  pages  remembers  when  the  endearing  phrase  still  lingered  on  Anglo-American  lips  even  after 
the  Revolution." 


JRr.  37.]  PATRIOTS  IN  CONSULTATION.  349 

object  in  view,  and  the  good  of  others,  might  think  it  hard  to  be 
curtailed  in  their  living  and  enjoyments." 

It  was  to  this  latter  class  that  Washington  belonged ;  yet  he  was 
not  only  willing  to  make  the  sacrifice  himself,  but  he  was  zealous  in 
urging  it  upon  others.  In  this  his  patriotism  was  conspicuous ;  and 
in  the  admirable  letter  from  which  we  have  quoted  so  liberally, 
the  thoughtful,  practical,  benevolent  characteristics  of  a  noble 
nature,  are  manifest  in  every  line.  He  concluded  by  saying : 
"  Upon  the  whole,  therefore,  I  think  the  scheme  a  good  one,  and 
that  it  ought  to  be  tried  here,  with  such  alterations  as  our  circum 
stances  render  absolutely  necessary.  But  in  what  manner  to  be 
gin  the  work  is  a  matter  worthy  of  consideration.  Whether  it 
can  be  attempted  with  propriety  or  efficacy,  further  than  a  com 
munication  of  sentiments  to  one  another,  before  May,  when  the 
general  court  and  assembly  will  meet  at  Williamsburg,  and  a  uni 
form  plan  can  be  concerted,  and  sent  into  the  different  counties  to 
operate  at  the  same  time,  and  in  the  same  manner,  everywhere,  is 
a  thing  upon  which  I  am  somewhat  in  doubt,  and  I  should  be  glad 
to  know  your  opinion." 

To  this  letter  Mr.  Mason  replied  the  same  day,  at  considerable 
length.  "  I  entirely  agree  with  you,"  he  observed,  "  that  no  regular 
plan  of  the  sort  proposed,  can  be  entered  into  here,  before  the 
meeting  of  the  general  court  at  least,  if  not  of  the  assembly.  In 
the  meantime,  it  may  be  necessary  to  publish  something  preparatory 
to  it  in  our  gazettes,*  to  warn  the  people  of  the  impending  danger, 
and  induce  them  more  readily  and  cheerfully  to  concur  in  the 
proper  means  to  avert  it ;  and  something  of  this  sort  I  had  begun, 
but  am  unluckily  stopped  by  a  disorder  which  affects  my  head  and 
eyes.  As  soon  as  I  am  able,  I  shall  resume  it,  and  then  write  you 
more  fully,  or  endeavor  to  see  you.  In  the  meantime,  pray  commit 
to  writing  such  hints  as  may  occur.  Our  all  is  at  stake,  and  the 
little  conveniencies  and  comforts  of  life  when  set  in  competition 
with  our  liberty,  ought  to  be  rejected,  not  with  reluctance,  but  with 
pleasure....  We  may  retrench  all  manner  of  superfluities,  finery 

*  See  note  on  page  211 


350  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1769. 

of  all  descriptions,  and  confine  ourselves  to  linens,  woollens,  &c.,  not 
exceeding  a  certain  price.  It  is  amazing  how  much  this  practice, 
if  adopted  in  all  the  colonies,  would  lessen  the  American  imports, 
and  distress  the  various  traders  and  manufacturers  in  Great  Britain. 
This  would  awaken  their  attention.  They  would  see,  they  would 
feel,  the  oppressions  we  groan  under,  and  exert  themselves  to  pro 
cure  us  redress." 

Not,  for  a  moment,  entertaining  a  thought  of  political  separation 
from  Great  Britain,  but  evidently  hoping  for  reconciliation,  Mr. 
Mason  continued :  "  However  singular  I  may  be  in  my  opinion,  I 
am  thoroughly  convinced,  that  justice  and  harmony  happily  re 
stored,  it  is  not  the  interest  of  these  colonies  to  refuse  British  man 
ufactures.  Our  supplying  our  mother-country  with  gross  materials, 
and  taking  her  manufactures  in  return,  is  the  true  chain  of  con 
nection  between  us.  These  are  the  bands,  which,  if  not  broken  by 
oppression,  must  long  hold  us  together,  by  maintaining  a  constant 
reciprocation  of  interest.  Proper  caution  should,  therefore,  be  used 
in  drawing  up  the  proposed  plan  of  association.  It  may  not  be 
amiss  to  let  the  ministry  understand,  that,  until  we  obtain  a  redress 
of  grievances,  we  will  withhold  from  them  our  commodities,  and 
particularly  refrain  from  making  tobacco,  by  which  the  revenue 
would  lose  fifty  times  more  than  all  their  oppressions  could  raise 
here."* 

Such  were  the  sentiments  of  Washington  and  his  compatriots  in 
Virginia,  when  they  entered  upon  that  long  struggle  for  right,  which 
resulted  in  the  independence  of  the  colonies. 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.,  354. 


MT.  37.]  A  MELODRAMA.  351 


CHAPTER   XXXIII. 

LORD     BOTETOURT,    GOVERNOR     OF     VIRGINIA HIS     CHARACTER HIS     MISTAKES 

AND     FOLLIES    IN    ASSUMING     ROYAL    AIRS DISTINGUISHED     PATRIOTS    IN    THE 

VIRGINIA  ASSEMBLY THEIR  OPPOSITION  TO  THE  ROYAL  GOVERNMENT DISSO 
LUTION  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY MEETING  OF  THE  MEMBERS  AT  THE  RALEIGH  TAVERN 

DRAFT    OF    AN     ASSOCIATION     PRESENTED    BY    WASHINGTON ITS    UNANIMOUS 

ADOPTION RE-ELECTION  OF  ALL  THE  PATRIOTS WASHINGTON'S  NOBLE  EF 
FORTS  IN  BEHALF  OF  HIS  COMPANIONS-IN-ARMS JOURNEY  TO  THE  OHIO  COUN 
TRY FINAL  ADJUSTMENT  OF  THE  SOLDIERS'  CLAIMS. 

IN  blossoming  May,  1769,  a  curious  melodrama  in  actual  life  was 
performed  at  Williamsburg,  the  gay  little  capital  of  Virginia.  Lord 
Botetourt,  one  of  the  king's  lords  of  the  bedchamber,  had  arrived 
there  in  the  previous  autumn,  as  the  successor  of  the  deceased 
governor  Fauquier.  He  was  a  man  ever  ready  for  action,  as 
evinced  by  his  reply  to  the  king,  on  his  appointment,  when  his 
majesty  asked,  "  When  will  you  be  ready  to  go  T  "  To-night,"  was 
his  lordship's  prompt  answer.  He  was  an  upright,  honorable,  benev 
olent,  and  accomplished  man,  and  came  with  a  sincere  desire  to 
govern  Virginia  with  a  single  eye  to  the  welfare  of  the  people. 
He  was  a  courtier,  too,  but  not  a  sycophant.  He  knew  well  how  to 
please  those  whom  he  wished  to  oblige.  Because  of  this  faculty, 
Junius  described  him  as  a  "cringing,  bowing,  fawning,  and  sword- 
bearing  courtier ;"  and  Horace  Walpole  said,  on  his  departure,  that 
"  if  his  graces  do  not  captivate  the  Virginians,  he  will  enrage  them 
to  fury ;  for  I  take  all  his  douceur  to  be  enamelled  on  iron." 

The  opinion  concerning  the  Americans  entertained  by  Lord 
Botetourt,  is  a  fair  specimen  of  the  general  ignorance  of  their 
character  which  then  prevailed  in  Great  Britain.  He  had  received 
the  impression  that  they  were  immoral,  factious,  and  naturally  dis- 


352  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1769. 

contented  and  rebellious;  but  being  vain,  ostentatious,  and  luxu 
rious,  they  were  easily  captivated  by  titular  distinctions,  and  gaudy 
pageantries.  His  outfit  was  intended  to  enable  him  to  gratify  the 
foibles  of  the  people  he  was  sent  to  govern,  and  thus  to  secure 
absolute  control  over  them.  The  king  presented  him  with  a  showy 
state-carriage  and  steeds.  He  was  allowed  the  usual  quantity  and 
style  of  plate  given  to  first-class  embassadors,  and  his  residence  at 
Williamsburg  was  styled  his  "  palace." 

From  the  time  of  his  arrival  until  the  spring  of  1769,  Lord 
Botetourt  gave  but  little  offence  to  the  most  rigid  republican  sim 
plicity.  He  kept  everything  in  reserve  for  a  proper  occasion  to 
make  a  powerful  impression  upon  the  popular  mind.  That  occasion 
was  the  opening  of  the  Virginia  assembly,  in  May,  which  it  was  the 
duty  of  the  governor  to  perform  in  person.  This  service  Botetourt 
attempted  in  the  style  of  the  royal  opening  of  Parliament,  he  being 
the  representative  of  the  king.  Dressed  in  official  costume,  he  left 
his  "palace"  in  his  state-carriage,  which  was  drawn  by  six  milk- 
white  horses,  driven  by  a  liveried  coachman,  and  attended  by  liv 
eried  out-riders.  In  this  state  he  proceeded  to  the  capitol,  entered 
the  assembly-chamber  with  a  train  of  attendants,  and  having  deliv 
ered  his  speech  in  royal  form,  he  returned  to  his  dwelling  with  the 
same  solemn  parade,  fondly  believing  that  the  legislature  and  the 
people  were  prepared  to  bow  to  royal  authority,  whenever  its 
behests  should  be  uttered  by  his  lips.  It  was  a  sad  spectacle  to  see 
a  really  good,  but  wretchedly-deceived  man,  playing  a  ridiculous 
pantomime  before  an  intelligent  audience,  who  despised  the  de 
ceivers,  and  pitied  the  victim. 

The  members  of  the  house  of  burgesses  clearly  perceived  the 
intention  of  all  this  parade.  It  was  made  at  a  time  singularly 
unpropitious  for  effect,  for  the  whole  country  was  excited  by  minis 
terial  wrongs,  and  the  thoughts  of  the  grave  men  of  the  Virginia 
assembly  were  too  much  occupied  with  weighty  matters,  that  con 
cerned  the  well-being  of  their  country,  and  of  mankind,  to  afford 
more  than  a  passing  smile  of  contempt  upon  this  device  to  win 
them  from  their  allegiance  to  a  noble  principle. 


JET.  37.]  VIRGINIA  REPUBLICANS.  353 

The  Virginia  burgesses  had  been  in  session  but  a  few  days,  when 
their  acts  effectually  dispelled  the  illusion  that  misled  the  judgment 
of  Lord  Botetourt.  Washington  was  there,  fired  with  zeal  for  the 
cause  of  his  country,  and  bearing  in  his  hand  one  of  the  most 
powerful  weapons  with  which  the  colonists  at  first  contended  -with 
Great  Britain,  as  we  shall  perceive  presently.  He  was  surrounded 
by  some  of  the  ablest  and  most  devoted  patriots  that  ever  appeared 
in  America.  There  was  the  bold  Patrick  Henry,  whose  trumpet- 
tones  had  recently  awakened  the  moral  echoes  of  a  continent. 
There  was  Edmund  Pendleton,  the  dexterous  politician,  and  grace 
ful  and  persuasive  speaker ;  and  Richard  Bland,  the  profound  logi 
cian,  eminent  for  the  extent  and  accuracy  of  his  knowledge.  In 
the  speaker's  chair  was  Peyton  Randolph,  the  popular  and  eloquent 
leader,  of  stern  integrity  and  inflexible  resolution,  who  presided 
over  the  first  continental  Congress  a  few  years  later ;  and  George 
Wythe,  the  simple,  stern  republican,  and  elegant  wit ;  and  Richard 
Henry  Lee,  one  of  the  most  accomplished  scholars  and  orators  in 
America,  who  was  called  by  common  consent,  the  Virginian  Cicero. 

There,  too,  was  Thomas  Jefferson,  a  young  lawyer,  distinguished 
for  his  eminent  abilities,  liberality  of  views,  and  boldness  of  char 
acter,  who  now  commenced  his  public  life  as  a  friend  of  mankind. 
These,  and  others  less  celebrated  by  the  pen  of  history,  but  no 
less  patriotic  and  firm,  were  the  compeers  of  Washington  in  the 
Virginia  house  of  burgesses  during  its  short  but  remarkable  session 
of  1769. 

So  united  in  sentiment  were  the  burgesses,  that  their  consulta 
tions  were  not  embarrassed  by  conflicting  views.  The  British 
houses  of  Parliament  had  passed  concurrent  resolves,  censuring  the 
votes,  resolutions,  and  proceeding  of  Massachusetts ;  and  in  a  joint 
address  to  the  king,  they  expressed  their  satisfaction  in  the  measures 
that  he  had  pursued,  and  assured  him  of  their  strong  and  uniform 
support  in  such  measures  as  might  be  found  necessary,  "  to  maintain 
the  magistrates  in  a  due  execution  of  the  laws  in  Massachusetts 
Bay."  They  also  besought  him  to  direct  the  governor  of  that 
province  to  send  all  persons  "  charged  with  treason  or  misprision  of 

23 


354  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  Lx769. 

treason,"  committed  within  that  province  since  the  thirtieth  of 
December,  1767,  to  Great  Britain  for  trial. 

When  these  resolves  and  address  reached  the  colonies,  they 
created  alarm  and  indignation.  The  governor  of  Massachusetts 
had  dissolved  the  general  assembly  of  that  province,  and  it  had  no 
legislature.  Virginia  promptly  and  generously  took  up  the  cause 
of  its  suffering  sister.  The  burgesses,  by  unanimous  vote  on  the 
sixteenth  of  May,  adopted  a  series  of  resolutions,  counter  in  letter 
and  spirit  to  those  of  Parliament,  and  directed  the  speaker  forthwith 
to  transmit  them  to  all  the  houses  of  assembly  in  America.  In 
these  resolutions  the  doctrine  that  the  sole  right  of  imposing  taxes 
on  the  inhabitants  of  a  colony  is  vested  in  its  assembly;  of  the 
privilege  of  petitioning  the  sovereign  for  a  redress  of  grievances ;  of 
the  right  of  every  accused  person  to  a  trial  by  his  peers  of  the 
vicinage ;  and  of  the  unconstitutionally  of  any  law  that  should 
authorize  the  transportation  to  Great  Britain  of  any  colonial  of 
fender,  for  trial,  was  strongly  put  forth.*  The  assembly,  at  the 
same  time,  prepared  an  address  to  the  king,  in  which  they  assured 
him  that  the  complaints  of  all  of  his  American  subjects  were  well 
founded.  They  disdained  any  further  application  to  Parliament, 
and  ordered  the  agent  of  Virginia,  in  England,  to  present  their 
address  to  the  king  in  person,  and  then  to  publish  it  in  the  English 
newspapers. 

This  rebellious  demonstration  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  so  soon 
after  his  mock-royal  pageant,  greatly  astonished  and  alarmed  Lord 
Botetourt.  In  conformity  to  his  oath  and  the  requirements  of  his 
duty  to  his  sovereign,  he  took  immediate  steps  to  avert  the  revolu 
tionary  movement.  At  noon  the  next  day,  he  suddenly  appeared 
in  the  assembly  chamber  during  the  session.  There  was  at  once  a 
respectful  silence,  when  he  said:  "Mr.  Speaker  and  gentlemen,  I 
have  heard  of  your  resolutions  and  augur  ill  of  their  effects.  You 

*  These  resolutions  were  drawn  by  Thomas  Jefferson,  one  of  the  youngest  members  of  the  as 
sembly.  His  first  act  in  the  house  had  evinced  his  appreciation  of  freedom.  He  proposed  a  law 
which  should  give  the  masters  of  slaves  unrestricted  right  to  emancipate  them.  The  motion  did  not 
prevail,  but  it  drew  the  attention  of  the  assembly  to  his  talents,  and  he  was  employed  to  prepare 
both  the  counter-resolutions  of  the  house,  and  the  address  to  the  king. 


MT.  57.]  NON-IMPORTATION  ASSOCIATION.  355 

have  made  it  my  duty  to  dissolve  you;  and  you  are  dissolved 
accordingly."  His  lordship's  action  was  expected  by  the  burgesses, 
and  their  future  course  had  been  already  determined.  On  the  fol 
lowing  morning  they  assembled  in  the  Apollo  room,  at  the  Raleigh 
tavern,  when,  professing  to  assume  no  other  capacity  than  that  of 
private  citizens,  they  formed  themselves  into  a  voluntary  conven 
tion,  and  appointed  their  late  speaker •,  Mr.  Randolph,  their  moderator. 
When  the  convention  was  organized,  Washington  came  forward  and 
presented  a  draft  of  articles  of  association  against  the  use  of  any 
merchandise  imported  from  Great  Britain,  which  had  been  concerted 
between  himself  and  Mr.  Mason.*  These  were  in  the  hand-writing 
of  the  latter.  They  consisted  of  a  preamble  and  eight  resolves, 
after  slight  revision,  they  were  assented  to  unanimously.  The 
association  was  signed  by  every  person  present,  and  copies  were  sent 
throughout  the  country  for  the  signatures  of  the  people.f  These 
burgesses  then  repaired  to  their  respective  counties,  and  were  all  re- 
elected. 

Washington  adhered,  with  scrupulous  exactness,  to  the  terms  of 
the  association,  and  none  of  the  proscribed  articles  were  seen  at  Mount 
Vernon  while  it  remained  in  force.  In  his  first  letter  to  his  agent 
in  London,  after  subscribing  the  association,  he  wrote :  "  You  will 
perceive,  in  looking  over  the  several  invoices,  that  some  of  the 
goods  there  required,  are  upon  condition,  that  the  act  of  Parliament 
imposing  a  duty  on  tea,  paper,  &c.,  for  the  purpose  of  raising  a 
revenue  in  America,  is  totally  repealed ;  and  I  beg  the  favor  of 
you  to  be  governed  strictly  thereby,  as  it  will  not  be  in  my  power 
to  receive  any  articles  contrary  to  our  non-importation  agreement, 

^  George  Mason  was  a  statesman  of  much  distinction.  He  drafted  the  first  republican  constitution 
of  Virginia,  in  1 776,  and  was  a  member  of  the  convention  that  framed  the  federal  constitution  in  1 787. 
He  was  one  of  the  ablest  men  in  that  convention.  When  the  constitution  came  before  a  convention 
of  the  people  for  consideration,  the  next  year,  he  joined  Patrick  Henry  in  opposing  it,  because  of  its 
encroachments  upon  state-rights.  He  also  warmly  opposed  the  section  allowing  a  continuance  of 
the  slave-trade. 

t  The  Association  is  printed  in  Burke's  History  of  Virginia,  iii.,  345.  "  On  comparing  it  with 
Mr.  Mason's  manuscript  draft,"  says  Sparks  (ii.,  356),  "retained  by  Washington,  I  find  it  precisely 
the  same,  except  the  addition  of  two  short  articles,  and  the  omission  of  another."  The  one  omitted 
by  the  burgesses  recommended  that,  "if  the  measures  already  entered  into  should  prove  ineffectual, 
a  stop  should  be  put  to  the  exportation  of  tar,  pitch,  turpentine,  lumber,  timber,  and  skins  and  furs 
of  all  sorts." 


356  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

which  1  have  subscribed,  and  shall  religiously  adhere  to,  and  should, 
if  it  were,  as  I  could  wish  it  to  be,  ten  times  as  strict,"  Hundreds 
of  others  in  Virginia  made  the  same  cheerful  sacrifice  of  luxuries, 
and  even  necessaries,  and  the  ministerial  measures  were  openly 
condemned,  even  in  the  presence  of  hirelings  of  the  crown. 

Botecourt  was  soon  undeceived,  and  wisely  conforming  his  con 
duct  to  the  demands  of  inexorable  circumstances,  he  conciliated  the 
people,  examined  into  alleged  public  grievances,  became  a  zealous 
advocate  for  a  repeal  of  the  laws  so  obnoxious  to  the  colonists,  and 
in  good  faith  worked  nobly  for  the  happiness  of  the  Virginians. 
Unlike  some  of  the  royal  governors,  he  did  not  make  the  matter  a 
personal  consideration ;  and  by  dignity  and  justice  in  his  official 
acts,  and  courteous  deportment  toward  the  people,  he  won  the 
esteem  and  confidence  of  all.  When  he  died  in  1771,  the  event 
was  mourned  by  the  Virginians  as  a  public  calamity,  and  the  house 
of  burgesses  decreed  a  statue  to  his  memory.  It  was  erected  in 
front  of  the  old  capital ;  and  now,  though  in  a  mutilated  state,  it 
may  be  seen  upon  the  green  in  front  of  William  and  Mary  college. 

While  public  duties  were  occupying  much  of  Washington's  time, 
after  these  proceedings  at  Williamsburg,  his  attention  was  called  to 
the  claims  of  the  officers  and  soldiers  in  the  late  war,  to  lands  in 
the  Ohio  country,  promised  and  granted  to  them  in  1754,  by  an 
order  in  council,  and  the  proclamation  of  Governor  Dinwiddie.  As 
these  grants  had  never  been  located  and  actual  possession  given,  on 
account  of  the  unsettled  state  of  affairs,  the  flow  of  emigration 
over  the  mountains  after  the  end  of  Pontiac's  war,  in  1764,  was 
likely  to  deprive  the  grantees  of  their  rightful  domain.  Early  in 
1770,  immediate  danger  to  their  claims  impended.  A  company  in 
England  solicited  a  grant,  the  proposed  boundaries  of  which  in 
cluded  nearly  all  the  tract  wherein  lay  the  promised  bounty-land. 
Washington  at  once  took  the  matter  in  hand,  as  the  champion  of 
the  soldier,  with  great  zeal.  He  first  laid  before  Lord  Botecourt  an 
historical  account  of  the  claim,  and  in  a  letter  written  on  the  fif 
teenth  of  April,  1770,  he  entered  a  warm  protest  against  the  pro 
posed  grant  to  the  English  company.  "  I  shall  take  the  liberty," 


JET.  38.]  SOLDIERS'  CLAIMS.  357 

he  said,  "to  inform  your  lordship,  that  the  bounds  of  that  grant 
(solicited  by  Walpole  and  others),  if  obtained  upon  the  extensive 
plan  proposed,  will  comprehend  at  least  four  fifths  of  the  land,  for 
the  purchase  and  survey  of  which  this  government  has  lately  voted 
two  thousand  five  hundred  pounds  sterling.  It  must,  therefore, 
destroy  the  well-grounded  hopes  of  those  (if  no  reservation  is 
made  in  their  favor),  who  have  had  the  strongest  assurances  that 
the  government  could  give,  of  enjoying  a  certain  portion  of  the 
lands  which  have  cost  this  country  so  much  blood  and  treasure  to 
secure." 

Washington  then  cited  the  proposed  boundary  in  detail,  and 
added :  "  These,  my  lord,  are  the  bounds  of  a  grant  prayed  for,  and 
which,  if  obtained,  will  give  a  fatal  blow,  in  my  humble  opinion,  to 
the  interests  of  this  country.  But  these  are  my  sentiments  as  a 
member  of  the  community  at  large.  I  now  beg  leave  to  offer 
myself  to  your  excellency's  notice  in  a  more  interested  point  of 
view,  as  an  individual,  and  as  a  person  who  considers  himself  in 
some  degree  the  representative  of  the  officers  and  soldiers,  who 
claim  a  right  to  two  hundred  thousand  acres  of  this  very  land, 
under  a  solemn  act  of  government,  adopted  at  a  period  very  im 
portant  and  critical  to  his  majesty's  affairs  in  this  part  of  the  world. 
I  shall,  therefore,  rely  on  your  lordship's  accustomed  goodness  and 
candor,  while  I  add  a  few  words  in  support  of  the  equity  of  our 
pretensions,  although,  in  truth,  I  have  very  little  to  say  on  this 
subject  now,  which  I  have  not  heretofore  taken  the  liberty  of  ob 
serving  to  your  excellency. 

"  I  will  next  add,"  he  said  in  conclusion,  "  that  these  troops  not 
only  enlisted  agreeably  to  the  proclamation,  but  behaved  so  much 
to  the  satisfaction  of  the  country,  as  to  be  honored  by  the  most 
public  acknowledgment  of  it  by  the  assembly.  Would  it  not  be 
hard,  then,  my  lord,  to  deprive  men,  under  these  circumstances,  or 
these  representations,  of  the  just  reward  of  their  toils.  Was  not 
this  act  of  the  governor  and  council  offered  to  the  soldiers,  and 
accepted  by  them,  as  an  absolute  compact  ?  And  though  the  exi 
gency  of  affairs,  or  the  policy  of  the  government  made  it  necessary 


358  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

to  continue  these  lands  in  a  dormant  state  for  a  time,  ought  not 
their  claim  to  be  considered  in  preference  to  all  others  ?" 

Washington's  representations  to  the  public  authorities,  and  his 
untiring  personal  exertions,  chiefly  at  his  own  cost,  finally  procured 
justice  for  the  claimants.  That  nothing  essential  to  their  interests 
should  remain  undone,  he  resolved  to  visit  the  region  under  con 
sideration,  and  select  the  best  tracts  of  land  for  his  companions-in 
arms.  He  set  out  from  Mount  Vernon  on  the  fifth  of  October, 
1770,  accompanied  by  his  friend  and  neighbor,  Doctor  Craik,  and 
three  negro-attendants,  two  of  whom  belonged  to  Colonel  Wash 
ington.  They  departed  with  light  hearts,  and  felt  a  great  pleasure 
in  the  prospect  of  a  peaceful  revisitation  of  scenes  of  conflict  in 
which  they  had  been  engaged  long  years  before.  The  wilderness 
they  were  about  to  penetrate  beyond  Fort  Pitt  (old  Fort  Duquesne), 
was  yet  untrodden  by  the  foot  of  the  white  man,  except  those  of 
the  hostile  Frenchmen,  and  hunters  and  traders,  or  emissaries  of 
land  speculators.  There  were  no  settlements  of  white  people  on  the 
banks  of  the  Ohio  below  that  fort. 

Washington  and  his  companions  proceeded  to  Fort  Pitt  on  horse 
back.  There  they  were  cordially  received,  after  twelve  days  of 
weary  travel,  by  Captain  Edmonson,  who  commanded  the  little 
garrison  of  two  companies  of  the  royal  Irish.  There,  where  Wash 
ington  had  unfurled  the  British  flag  over  a  ruined  fortress  twelve 
years  before,  a  town  of  twenty  log-houses  had  grown  up,  inhabited 
by  Indian-traders,  and  in  one  of  them,  while  at  dinner,  he  met  his  old 
acquaintance,  George  Croghan,  who,  after  having  experienced  many 
vicissitudes  upon  the  frontiers,  now  held  the  commission  of  colonel, 
was  a  deputy  Indian  agent,  under  Sir  William  Johnson,  and  was 
residing  on  the  banks  of  the  Alleghany  river,  about  four  miles  from 
the  fort.  At  Croghan's  residence,  the  next  day,  Washington  was 
greeted  by  White  Mingo,  and  several  other  chiefs  of  the  Six 
Nations,  who  remembered  having  seen  him  when  he  visited  the 
French  commander,  in  1753.  White  Mingo  made  a  speech,  in 
which  he  expressed  a  desire  that  the  Virginians  should  consider  the 
Six  Nations  as  their  friends  and  brothers,  and  a  hope  that  all  of  the 


MT.  38.]  WASHINGTON  ON  THE  OHIO.  359 

troubles  on  the  frontier  were  now  settled  for  ever.  A  "  speech  belt" 
was  then  presented,  which  Washington  accepted,  and  made  a  friendly 
reply. 

Washington  and  his  companions  left  their  horses  at  Fort  Pitt,  and 
accompanied  by  John  Nicholson,  as  interpreter,  and  William  Craw 
ford,*  a  man  well  acquainted  with  the  Indians,  and  experienced  in 
woodcraft,  they  descended  the  Ohio  in  a  canoe  to  Point  Pleasant, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Great  Kenhawa,  a  distance  of  two  hundred 
and  sixty-five  miles.  They  were  attended  by  Colonel  Croghan  and 
some  officers  of  the  garrison,  as  far  as  Logstown,  where,  the  reader 
will  remember,  was  the  scene  of  Washington's  first  interview  with 
Tanacharisson,  the  half-king,  in  1753.  Then,  after  a  pleasant  break 
fast  together,  Colonel  Washington  and  his  companions  went  down  the 
Ohio,  while  Colonel  Croghan  and  his  attendants  cheered  them  heartily. 

Although  the  voyage  was  one  of  great  peril,  all  being  ignorant 
of  the  channels  of  the  river,  and  the  real  friendship  of  the  neigh 
boring  Indians  being  a  matter  of  much  doubt,  yet  they  had  ex 
quisite  enjoyment  for  several  days,  in  giving  free  play  to  their 
hunting  propensities.  Game  abounded  in  great  profusion,  and 
Washington  indulged  in  his  favorite  amusement  of  hunting,  to  his 
heart's  content.  Floating  upon  the  bosom  of  the  beautiful  Ohio, 
they  continually  encountered  large  flocks  of  ducks  and  geese,  while 
the  branches  of  the  trees  which  bent  over  the  margins  of  the  stream, 
were  filled  with  wild  turkeys.  Sometimes  they  would  travel  on  foot 
for  many  miles  through  the  forest,  leaving  the  oarsmen  in  charge  of 
the  canoe,  and  while  chasing  the  nimble  deer,  they  examined  the 
country,  and  made  valuable  observations.  These  Washington  care 
fully  noted  in  his  field-book.  They  consisted  of  descriptions  of  the 
general  contour  of  the  country,  the  character  of  the  soil  as  indi 
cated  by  the  nature  of  the  trees,  and  the  proximity  of  streams  to 
level  tracts  of  land  that  might  be  eligible  for  settlements.  They 
suffered  severe  hardships,  for  the  weather  became  inclement,  and 
they  encamped  at  night  with  no  other  protection  than  their  blankets, 
and  no  shelter  but  the  umbrageous  trees. 

*  Crawford,  a  few  years  later,  suffered  a  terrible  death  at  the  hands  of  the  exasperated  Indians. 


360  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

On  the  twenty-sixth  of  October  the  voyagers  reached  the  hunting- 
camp  of  Kiashuta,  the  famous  Seneca  chief,  who  was  among  the 
first  to  strike  the  white  people  under  the  direction  of  Pontiac.  His 
camp  was  near  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum  river,  and  Washington 
and  his  companions  landed  and  made  a  ceremonious  visit  to  the  chief. 
Kiashuta  immediately  recognised  Washington  as  the  young  embas- 
sador  whom  he  saw  seventeen  years  before,  at  Venango.  He  re 
ceived  him  in  the  most  cordial  manner,  and  after  entertaining 
him  and  his  party  in  the  best  of  barbaric  style,  he  assured  Wash 
ington  of  his  earnest  desire  to  preserve  everlasting  peace  between 
his  people  and  the  Virginians.  He  had  heard  of  what  had  occurred 
at  the  interview  with  the  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations,  at  Colonel 
Croghan's,  and  he  was  unwilling  to  be  outdone  in  protestations  of 
peaceful  desires. 

Washington  and  his  party  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Great 
Kenhawa  soon  after  this  auspicious  interview  with  Kiashuta,  and 
there  they  remained  two  or  three  days,  engaged  in  placing  monu 
ments  of  recognition  upon  such  tracts  of  fine  land  in  the  vicinity, 
as  he  intended  to  claim  for  the  soldiers,  and  in  the  pleasures  of 
hunting.  Doctor  Craik  afterward  related,  that  while  they  were 
there,  they  were  visited  by  an  old  chief,  who  was  a  leader  in  the 
ambush  that  dealt  such  destruction  upon  Braddock's  troops,  on  the 
field  of  Monongahela.  He  approached  Washington  with  great 
reverence,  at  the  head  of  several  of  his  tribe,  and  addressed  him 
through  Nicholson,  the  interpreter.  The  old  warrior  said  he  had 
come  a  long  way  to  see  Colonel  Washington,  on  being  told  that  he 
was  in  the  country,  for,  in  the  battle  of  Monongahela,  he  had  singled 
him  out  as  a  conspicuous  object,  fired  his  rifle  at  him  fifteen  times, 
and  directed  his  young  warriors  to  do  the  same,  but  no  one  could 
hit  him.  He  was  persuaded  that  the  Great  Spirit  protected  the 
young  hero,  and  ceased  firing  at  him.* 

Having  ascended  the  Great  Kenhawa  about  fourteen  miles,  and 
visited  and  examined  every  place  he  desired  to,  Colonel  Washington 

*  This  circumstance  is  alluded  to  on  page  168.  Washington,  in  writing  to  his  brother  after  the 
battle,  said,  "  I  had  four  bullets  through  my  coat,  and  two  horses  shot  under  me." 


JET.  38.]  THE  SOLDIER'S  REWARD.  361 

and  his  party  returned  to  Fort  Pitt ;  and  with  Doctor  Craik  and 
their  servants,  he  proceeded  to  Mount  Vernon,  where  they  arrived 
after  an  absence  of  nine  weeks.  He  now  pressed  the  matter  of 
adjusting  the  soldiers'  claims  with  great  vigor,  and  finally,  after 
much  vexatious  efforts,  he  accomplished  his  object  to  the  general 
satisfaction  of  all.*  Fifteen  thousand  acres  were  awarded  to  a  field- 
officer,  nine  thousand  to  a  captain,  six  thousand  to  a  subaltern,  and 
four  thousand  to  a  private.  Even  Van  Braam,  who  was  suspected 
of  treason  at  the  Great  Meadows,  was  not  overlooked ;  and  he  and 
Stobo,  who  were  then  in  London,  each  received  nine  thousand  acres, 
which  were  subsequently  purchased  from  them  by  Washington. 

*  There  were  a  few  dishonorable  exceptions.  Colonel  George  Muse,  Washington's  early  mili 
tary  instructor,  who  had  exhibited  cowardly  traits  while  in  the  service,  was  dissatisfied  with  the  share 
allotted  to  him,  and  wrote  an  impertinent  letter  to  Washington.  It  drew  from  the  insulted  colonel 
a  most  withering  reply.  The  first  paragraph  is  here  quoted,  to  show  what  a  caustic  pen  Wash 
ington  could  wield  when  necessity  called  for  its  exercise  :  "  Sir — Your  impertinent  letter  was  deliv 
ered  to  me  yesterday.  As  I  am  not  accustomed  to  receive  such,  from  any  man,  nor  would  have 
taken  the  same  language  from  you  personally,  without  letting  you  feel  some  marks  of  my  resent 
ment,  I  advise  you  to  be  cautious  in  writing  to  me  a  second  of  the  same  tenor ;  for  though  I  under 
stand  you  were  drunk  when  you  did  it,  yet  give  me  leave  to  tell  you,  that  drunkenness  is  no  excuse 
for  rudeness.  But  for  your  stupidity  and  sottishness,  you  might  have  known,  by  attending  to  the 
public  gazette,  that  you  had  your  full  quantity  of  ten  thousand  acres  of  land  allowed  you." 


362  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 


CHAPTER   XXXIV. 

WASHINGTON   AND    PASSING     EVENTS THE     KING   AND    HIS    ADVISERS WILLIAM 

PITT,  HIS  HONORS  AND  INFLUENCE CHANGE  IN  THE  BRITISH  CABINET JUNIUS 

LORD    NORTH ACTION  OF    THE    BRITISH  CABINET DUTY    ON  TEA  RETAINED 

REPEAL    OF    OTHER    DUTIES DISCONTENTS    IN  AMERICA THE    BOSTON    MAS 
SACRE PUBLIC  SENTIMENT  IN  VIRGINIA WISHES  OF  COLONIAL  GOVERNORS 

THE  GREAT  PRINCIPLES  INVOLVED PROGRESS  OF  POPULAR  POWER  IN  ENGLAND 

AND  AMERICA THE  REGULATORS. 

THE  year  1770  was  an  eventful  one  in  the  history  of  England, 
and  of  the  English  colonies,  and  every  man  in  America  feeling  a 
concern  in  the  public  affairs  of  the  realm,  was  constrained  to  act 
with  circumspection,  or  look  on  in  wonder  as  the  shifting  scenes 
of  current  events  revealed  new  phases  in  the  political  and  moral 
aspects  of  the  world.  Of  these  events  Washington  was  a  most 
attentive  and  interested  spectator.  Although  himself  half  uncon 
scious  of  the  fact,  they  formed  a  part  of  the  wonderful  web  of  his 
destiny,  then  about  to  be  marked  with  forms  and  colors  hitherto 
dimly  seen  by  his  countrymen,  but  which  had  some  well-defined 
significance  to  his  own  vision. 

From  the  accession  of  George  the  Third,  to  the  period  in  ques 
tion,  his  majesty's  simplicity  of  mind  and  goodness  of  heart  had 
made  him  a  plastic  instrument  in  the  hands  of  wicked,  or  ignorant, 
or  indolent  men,  in  weakening  the  power  of  his  own  government, 
and  in  eclipsing  that  prestige  of  the  English  name  so  well  estab 
lished  by  Pitt  and  his  coadjutors,  at  the  close  of  his  predecessor's 
reign.  For  several  years  after  the  accession  of  George,  Pitt  was 
disallowed  that  control  of  public  affairs  which  his  great  talents, 
eminent  services,  and  wide  experience  entitled  him  to ;  and  it  was 
only  occasionally,  when  those  affairs  became  tangled  and  desperate 
—when  the  ship  of  state  was  among  breakers — that  he  was  per 
mitted  to  take  control  and  guide  the  helm.  When,  at  length,  he 


jET.  38.]  PITT  AND  HIS  INFLUENCE.  363 

was  elevated  to  the  peerage,  and  became  earl  of  Chatham  and 
prime-minister,  he  found,  too  late,  that  his  popularity  had  received 
a  deadening  blow,  and  that  the  sceptre  of  control  seemed  passing 
from  him.  The  people  had  been  proud  of  him  as  one  of  them 
selves —  as  the  greatest  commoner  in  England;  now  they  regarded 
him  as  one  who  had  been  lured  from  the  path  of  honor  and  duty 
by  the  glitter  of  an  earldom,  and  they  suspected  him  of  infidelity 
to  their  interests.  "  There  is,"  wrote  Burke  from  Dublin,  "  still  a 
little  twilight  of  popularity  remaining  around  the  great  peer,  but  it 
fades  away  every  moment ;"  and  Chesterfield  said  of  his  entrance 
into  that  "  hospital  of  incurables,"  as  he  called  the  house  of  lords, 
"  all  his  enemies,  without  exception,  rejoice  at  it,  and  all  his  friends 
are  stupified  and  dumb-founded." 

But  Pitt  did  not  withdraw  his  sympathies  from  the  people  who 
loved  him  so  well,  when  he  entered  the  house  of  lords,  notwith 
standing  he  made  some  foolish  displays  in  his  new  character.*  Such 
sympathies  were  always  predominant  among  his  sentiments,  and 
his  conduct  won  back  the  straying  confidence  and  affections  of  the 
people.  Sickness  kept  him  much  away  from  the  active  duties  of  life, 
and  for  more  than  a  year  and  a  half  before  his  resignation  of  the 
premiership,  in  the  autumn  of  1768,  his  voice  was  not  heard  in  any 
cause  outside  of  his  close  retirement  at  his  country-seat  at  Hayes. 
Yet  the  influence  of  that  great  man  was  wonderful  even  in  his 
obscurity.  His  health,  his  friendships,  his  agreements  and  disagree 
ments  with  this  and  that  public  man,  were  matters  of  deep  interest 
to  all  England,  and  to  the  cabinets  of  Europe.  "  It  is  strange,"  says 
Lord  Mahon,  "  how  large  a  space  in  the  history  of  England  at  that 
period,  must  be  devoted  to  the  details  of  his  personal  health  and 
his  family  feuds.  The  fate  of  the  nation  seemed  to  hang  suspended 
on  the  gout  and  on  the  Grenvilles." 

*  Chesterfield  has  left  a  record  of  the  unusual  pomp  and  needless  train  of  sen-ants  that  Chatham 
maintained.  In  the  summer  of  1769,  he  became  reconciled  to  his  brother-in-law,  Lord  Temple, 
and  proceeded,  in  a  formal  manner,  to  visit  him  at  his  mansion  at  Stowe.  Burke,  writing  to  the 
marquis  of  Rockingham  on  the  30th  of  July  said  :  "  I  ought  to  tell  you  that  Lord  Chatham  passed 
by  my  door  on  Friday  morning  in  a  jimwhiskee  drawn  by  two  horses,  one  before  the  other ;  he  drove 
himself.  His  train  was  two  coaches-and-six,  with  twenty  servants,  male  and  female.  He  was  pro 
ceeding  with  his  whole  family,  Lady  Chatham,  two  sons,  and  two  daughters,  to  Stowe." 


364  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

At  length  Lord  Chatham's  health  improved,  and  he  appeared  in 
public,  after  an  absence  of  two  years  and  a  half.  Men  gazed  upon 
him  as  one  risen  from  the  dead,  but  it  was  soon  found  that  not  a 
particle  of  the  fire  of  his  genius  had  been  quenched.  He  had 
recently  become  reconciled  to  some  of  his  political  friends,  and  he 
was  in  his  place  in  Parliament  at  its  opening  in  January,  1770, 
when  he  appeared  on  the  side  of  the  opposition,  in  coalition  with 
powerful  men,  to  the  great  consternation  of  the  ministry. 

American  affairs  and  other  subjects  were  topics  for  Pitt's  match 
less  eloquence  and  withering  invective.  Timid  lords,  shielded  by 
the  wings  of  his  leadership,  spoke  out  their  sentiments  boldly 
against  the  ministry.  Cabinet  officers,  alarmed,  forsook  the  king ; 
and  the  duke  of  Grafton,  his  prime-minister,  quailing  beneath  the 
falchion  blows  of  Pitt,  and  the  keen  shafts  of  Junius,*  resigned  his 
place.  "  Thus,"  says  Lord  Mahon,  "  no  sooner  had  Lord  Chatham 
emerged  from  his  retirement,  and  raised  his  voice  against  the  min 
istry,  than  the  ministry  crumbled  to  pieces."  It  was  astonishing 
how  great  was  the  effect  of  his  return  to  public  life,  and  the  declara 
tion  of  his  sentiments.  It  immediately  produced  a  ministerial  crisis 
as  keen  and  strange  as  any  recorded  in  British  history,  and  elevated 
to  the  premiership  of  that  realm,  a  man  who  remained  in  that 
important  position  until  the  close  of  our  war  for  independence,  and 
who  did  more,  by  his  misguided  policy,  to  bring  about  that  result, 
than  any  man  in  England.  That  man  was  Frederick,  Lord  North, 
second  son  of  the  earl  of  Guilford.  He  came  into  office  contrary 
to  the  wishes  or  expectations  of  Pitt,  and  with  very  little  prospect 
of  permanence.  He  was  the  seventh  prime-minister  chosen  during 
the  first  ten  years  of  George's  reign,  and  he  held  the  office  longer 
than  all  of  his  six  predecessors  combined.  He  was  an  honest  man, 

*  A  series  of  articles  over  the  signature  of  Junius,  as  is  well  known,  was  published  in  the  ' '  Public 
Advertiser,"  one  of  the  newspapers  of  London,  printed  by  Henry  Sampson  Woodfall.  They  cre 
ated  a  great  sensation  at  the  time,  and  the  authorship  has  been  the  theme  for  much  discussion  ever 
since.  These  letters,  addressed  to  persons  of  distinction,  and  even  to  the  king,  abounded  with  the 
keenest  invective,  and  pierced  deeply  those  against  whom  the  shafts  were  levelled.  The  duke  of 
Grafton,  and  Sir  William  Draper,  were  the  most  prominent  objects  of  attack.  The  letters  were 
chiefly  of  apolitical  character,  yet  not  always  so.  Their  publication  continued  from  April,  1767, 
until  May,  1772.  Great  efforts  were  made  to  discover  the  writer,  but  apparently  without  effect.  It 
now  seems  probable,  from  the  best  testimony,  that  the  author  was  Sir  Philip  Francis. 


MT.  38.]  REPEAL  OF  DUTIES.  365 

destitute  of  all  outward  advantages  of  personal  grace,  sagacious  in 
unravelling  the  most  intricate  details  of  public  persons,  but  lacking 
energy,  firmness,  and  a  fixed  and  resolute  will.  His  figure  was 
overgrown,  and  he  was  extremely  near-sighted.  He  possessed 
uncommon  sweetness  of  temper,  frequently  yielded  his  own  delib 
erate  judgment  to  the  persuasions  of  his  sovereign  or  his  friends, 
and  lacked  the  "  power  to  resist  the  influence  of  those  he  loved."* 
Such  was  the  man  whom  wre  shall  now  meet  frequently  in  the 
progress  of  this  biography,  especially  through  all  of  those  eventful 
years  in  the  life  of  Washington,  while  he  was  in  command  of  the 
continental  army  in  opposition  to  the  measures  of  that  minister. 
And  Pitt,  also,  who  performed  such  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  events 
which  elevated  North  to  the  ministry,  will  be  frequently  found  bat 
tling  manfully  with  the  opposition  against  the  measures  of  his  lord 
ship,  especially  in  his  management  of  American  affairs. 

On  the  fifth  of  March,  1770,  Lord  North  made  his  first  proposition 
in  Parliament,  as  the  head  of  the  ministry,  concerning  the  American 
colonies.  At  a  meeting  of  the  cabinet  on  the  first  of  May  prece- 
ding,-j-  the  lords  present  gave  it  as  their  opinion  and  advice  to  his 
majesty,  that  no  measure  should  be  taken  which  could,  in  any  way, 
derogate  from  the  legislative  authority  of  Great  Britain  over  the 
colonies ;  at  the  same  time  they  thought  it  inexpedient  to  lay  any 
further  taxes  upon  America  for  the  purpose  of  raising  a  revenue, 
and  expressed  their  intention  to  propose,  in  the  next  session  of 
Parliament,  to  take  off  the  duties  upon  paper,  glass,  and  colors, 
imported  into  America,  "  upon  consideration  of  such  duties  having 
been  laid  contrary  to  the  true  principles  of  commerce."  The  min 
isters  then  directed  Lord  Hillsborough,  the  colonial  secretary,  to 
address  a  circular  letter  to  the  colonies,  intimating  that  the  duties 
upon  all  articles  enumerated  in  the  act  of  1767,  would  be  taken  off, 
except  that  upon  tea.  This  would  be  a  partial  relief  from  a  light 

*  Letter  of  his  daughter,  Lady  Charlotte  Lindsay,  to  Lord  Brougham,  February  18,  1839. 

t  That  meeting  of  the  cabinet  was  held  at  the  office  of  Lord  Weymouth,  and  nine  lords  were 
present.  Lord  North  was  then  one  of  the  most  active  members  of  the  cabinet.  He  had  com 
menced  his  long  career  of  opposition  to  the  Americans  by  offering  a  resolution  on  the  fourteenth 
of  March,  preceding,  that  a  respectful  petition  or  a  remonstrance  from  the  people  of  New  York, 
should  not  be  received. 


366  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  J1770. 

burden ;  but,  as  the  cause  of  complaint  lay  in  a  violated  principle, 
this  concession,  wrung  from  them  by  expediency,  did  not  remove  it. 
The  principle  was  the  same,  whether  duties  were  exacted  on  one 
article  or  a  dozen,  and  so  long  as  the  assumed  right  of  Parliament 
to  tax  the  colonies  was  practically  asserted  in  the  smallest  degree, 
so  long  the  Americans  felt  their  rights  to  be  assailed. 

Lord  North,  who  was  a  member  of  the  cabinet  at  that  time,  now 
(March  5th,  1770)  came  forward  as  the  head  of  the  administration, 
and,  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  Hillsborough's  circular,  sub 
mitted  a  motion  to  repeal  the  duties  alluded  to,  except  that  upon 
tea.  "  This  was  continued,"  he  said,  "  to  maintain  the  right  of  Par 
liamentary  taxation ;"  at  the  same  time  he  alleged,  that  he  felt  a 
desire  to  remove  that  also,  but  recent  events  in  Boston  and  else 
where,  rendered  it  imprudent  to  do  so,  unless  the  government  was 
willing  to  abandon  its  rightful  sway  over  the  colonies,  and  instead 
of  redressing  a  grievance,  relinquish  a  right. 

The  events  to  which  the  minister  alluded,  were  indeed  revolu 
tionary,  such  as  the  acts  of  the  members  of  the  New  York,  Virginia, 
and  Massachusetts  assemblies  ;*  and,  on  the  very  day  when  he  sub 
mitted  his  concessory  motion  to  Parliament,  a  painful  occurrence 
took  place  in  Boston,  which  produced  a  profound  sensation  through 
out  the  colonies,  and  may  be  properly  regarded  as  the  opening 
scene  of  bloodshed  in  the  war  for  independence.  We  have  already 
observed  the  restiffness  of  the  people  of  Massachusetts  because  of 
the  armed  occupation  of  their  capital.  When  the  general  assembly 
of  the  province  met  in  May,  1769,  they  resolved  that  it  was  incon 
sistent  with  their  dignity  and  freedom  to  deliberate  in  the  midst  of 
an  armed  force,  and  that  the  presence  of  a  military  and  naval  arma- 

*  These  measures,  which  we  have  already  noticed  in  preceding  pages,  were  deprecated,  in  a 
measure,  by  some  of  the  friends  of  the  Americans.  Lord  Chatham,  in  debate  in  March,  1770,  said  : 
"  I  have  been  thought  to  be,  perhaps,  too  much  the  friend  of  America.  I  own  I  am  a  friend  to  that 
country.  I  love  the  Americans  because  they  love  liberty,  and  I  love  them  for  the  noble  efforts  they 
made  in  the  last  war.  But  I  must  own  I  find  fault  with  them  in  many  things ;  I  think  they  carry 
matters  too  far ;  they  have  been  wrong  in  many  respects  ....  If  they  carry  their  notions  of  liberty 
too  far,  as  I  fear  they  do,  if  they  will  not  be  subject  to  the  laws  of  this  country,  especially  if  they 
would  disengage  themselves  from  the  laws  of  trade  and  navigation,  of  which  I  see  too  many  symp 
toms,  as  much  of  an  American  as  I  am,  they  have  not  a  more  determined  opponent  than  they  will 
find  in  me." 


^ET.  38.]  THE  BOSTON  MASSACRE.  367 

ment  was  a  breach  of  privilege.  They  refused  to  enter  upon  any 
business  except  that  which  pertained  to  a  redress  of  grievances,  and 
respectfully  petitioned  Governor  Bernard  to  remove  the  troops  from 
Boston.  Hoping  to  reconcile  the  assembly,  he  adjourned  them  to 
Cambridge,  but  there  they  refused  to  make  even  the  smallest  appro 
priation  for  the  support  of  the  troops.  Finding  the  members  firm 
and  incorrigible,  the  governor,  on  the  twelfth  of  July,  prorogued 
the  assembly  to  the  tenth  of  January,  to  meet  at  Boston ;  and  on 
the  first  of  August,  he  sailed  for  England,  leaving  affairs  in  the 
hands  of  Hutchinson,  his  lieutenant,  who  was  a  native  of  the 
province. 

It  was  hoped  that  the  departure  of  Bernard  would  produce  more 
concord.  But  the  greatest  cause  for  discontent  remained.  The 
wound  inflicted  by  the  governor,  in  the  introduction  of  soldiers  into 
Boston,  was  daily  festering,  and  continual  quarrels  between  the  citi 
zens  and  the  troops  occurred.  Fights  with  straggling  soldiers  were 
frequent  events,  and  a  crisis  speedily  arrived.  On  the  second  of 
March,  a  ropemaker  quarrelled  with  a  soldier,  and  struck  him.  Out 
of  this  affray  grew  a  fight  between  several  soldiers  and  ropemakers. 
The  latter  were  beaten,  and  this  result  aroused  the  vengeance  of 
the  more  excitable  portion  of  the  inhabitants. 

On  the  evening  of  the  fifth,  about  seven  hundred  of  them  assem 
bled  in  the  streets,  with  clubs  and  other  weapons,  shouting,  "  Let  us 
drive  out  these  rascals!  They  have  no  business  here — drive  them 
out !"  In  King  (now  State)  street,  the  mob  were  addressed  by  a 
tall  man  in  a  scarlet  cloak  and  wearing  a  white  wig,  who  closed  his 
harangue  by  shouting,  "  To  the  main  guard !  to  the  main  guard !" 
and  then  disappeared.*  The  populace  echoed  the  shout,  and,  sepa 
rating  into  three  divisions,  took  different  routes  toward  the  quarters 
of  the  main  guard.  A  sentinel  was  assailed  near  the  customhouse, 
when  Captain  Preston,  the  commandant  of  the  guard,  went  to  his 
rescue  with  eight  armed  men.  The  mob  dared  the  soldiers  to  fire, 
and  attacked  them  with  stones,  pieces  of  ice,  and  other  missiles. 

*  Although  there  is  no  positive  evidence  of  the  fact,  yet  the  strongest  circumstantial  evidence 
affirms  it,  that  the  tall  man  in  question  was  Samuel  Adams. 


368  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

One  of  the  soldiers,  who  received  a  blow,  fired,  and  his  six  compan 
ions,  in  the  excitement  of  the  moment,  also  discharged  their  guns. 
Three  of  the  citizens  were  killed,  and  five  were  dangerously  wound 
ed.  The  mob  instantly  retreated,  and  all  the  bells  of  the  city  rang 
an  alarum.  In  less  than  an  hour,  several  thousands  of  exasperated 
citizens  were  in  the  streets,  and  a  terrible  scene  of  blood  would 
have  ensued,  had  not  Lieutenant-Governor  Hutchinson  assured  the 
people  that  justice  should  be  vindicated  in  the  morning. 

Morning  came,  and  the  people  demanded  the  instant  removal  of 
the  troops  from  Boston,  and  the  trial  of  Captain  Preston  and  his 
men  for  murder.  The  governor  acquiesced  in  these  demands.  The 
troops  were  sent  to  Castle  William,  in  the  harbor,  on  the  twelfth ; 
and  Preston,  ably  defended  by  John  Adams  and  Josiah  Quincy,  two 
of  the  popular  leaders,  was  tried  and  acquitted,  with  six  of  his  men, 
by  a  Boston  jury.  This  was  a  noble  and  unanswerable  comment  up 
on  the  libels  of  the  ministerial  party,  who  had  asserted  that  the  ser 
vants  of  the  crown  could  not  obtain  justice  in  America.  The  victims 
of  this  riot  were  regarded  as  martyrs  to  liberty,  and  until  the  kind 
ling  of  the  war  for  independence,  the  memory  of  the  Boston  Massacre, 
as  it  was  called,  was  kept  alive  by  anniversary  orations  in  the  city 
and  vicinity  on  the  return  of  every  fifth  of  March.  The  story,  in 
all  its  worst  aspects,  became  a  tale  of  horror,  and  everywhere  it 
excited  the  most  implacable  hatred  of  British  domination ;  and  the 
really  justifiable  act  of  the  soldiers  in  defending  their  lives  against 
a  lawless  mob,  was  magnified  by  exaggeration,  into  an  unprovoked 
assault  of  armed  mercenaries  upon  a  quiet  and  defenceless  people. 

The  Virginians  were  as  indignant  as  the  people  of  Massachusetts, 
because  of  the  proclamation  of  the  parliamentary  right  to  tax  the 
colonies,  made  by  retaining  the  duty  upon  tea.  Lord  Botetourt 
had  given  them  confident  assurances,  when  announcing  the  intended 
repeal  of  the  other  duties,  that  the  tax  upon  tea  would  also  be  given 
up.  Such  was  his  sincere  wish  ;  and  Eden,  the  governor  of  Maryland, 
advised  the  ministry  to  relinquish  it.  Golden,  of  New  York,  also 
expressed  a  similar  desire  and  belief;  and  the  colonists  generally, 
as  a  matter  of  convenience,  had  resumed  the  importation  and  con- 


JET.  34.]  PATRIOTIC  WOMEN.  363 

sumption  of  the  proscribed  articles,  the  duties  on  which  had  been 
repealed.  But  the  exaction  of  the  tea-duty,  though  merely  a 
"  pepper-corn  tax,"  aroused  their  subsiding  resentment.  The  great 
principle  involved  in  their  opposition  could  not  be  made  less  im 
portant  in  its  application  because  of  the  modified  form  of  that 
application ;  and  it  was  too  well  understood  and  appreciated  by  the 
great  body  of  the  colonists,  as  a  solemn  question  in  v/hich  their 
civil  liberty  was  involved,  to  be  lightly  regarded.  Therefore,  the 
retention  of  the  small  duty  upon  the  tea  being  an  act  of  Parliament 
avowedly  for  the  purpose  of  asserting  its  omnipotency,  the  Ameri 
cans  confined  their  issue  with  Great  Britain  to  that  single  act. 
"  Will  not  a  repeal  of  all  other  duties  satisfy  the  colonists  ?"  said  a 
member  of  the  ministerial  party  to  Doctor  Franklin,  in  London. 
"I  think  not,"  he  promptly  replied;  "it  is  not  the  sum  paid  in  the 
duty  on  tea  that  is  complained  of  as  a  burden,  but  the  principle  of 
the  act  expressed  in  the  preamble."  A  Boston  loyalist,  at  the  close 
of  1769,  wrote  to  his  friend  in  London — "The  repeal  of  the  duties 
laid  in  '67  has  caused  the  resumption  of  importations,  and  I  think 
that  the  efforts  of  demagogues  to  persuade  the  people  not  to  use 
tea  will  be  unavailing."  How  blind  was  he  to  the  teachings  of  the 
past,  and  the  progress  of  current  events !  Within  six  weeks  after 
ward  he  was  practically  answered,  when  the  mistresses  of  three 
hundred  families  in  Boston  alone,  subscribed  their  names  to  a  league, 
binding  themselves  not  to  drink  any  tea  until  the  act  levying  a 
duty  upon  it  should  be  repealed.  Emphasis  was  given  to  this  prac 
tical  answer  three  days  afterward,  when  the  young  ladies  of  Boston 
followed  the  example  of  the  matrons,  and  multitudes  of  them  said 
to  the  world,  by  their  signatures:  "We,  the  daughters  of  those 
patriots  who  have,  and  do  now,  appear  for  the  public  interest,  and 
in  that  principle  regard  their  posterity — as  such,  do  with  pleasure 
engage  with  them  in  denying  ourselves  the  drinking  of  foreign  tea, 
in  hopes  to  frustrate  a  plan  which  tends  to  deprive  a  whole  com 
munity  of  all  that  is  valuable  in  life."  All  classes  were  thoroughly 
imbued  with  such  feelings,  not  only  in  Massachusetts,  but  in  other 
colonies,  and  tea  was  everywhere  proscribed,  in  1770,  as  the  repre- 

24 


370  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1770. 

sentative  of  a  tyranny  opposed  to  the  living  principle  of  freedom 
which  had  taken  a  deep  hold  upon  the  hearts  of  the  people. 

It  was  clear  to  the  discerning  mind,  that  the  growth  of  the 
popular  strength  was  now  rapid  and  steady,  and  that  the  popular 
will  was  becoming  such  a  mighty  power  in  the  state,  that  the  days 
of  feudal  despotism  were  almost  numbered.  This  growth  was  not 
confined  to  the  American  colonies ;  it  was  equally  flourishing  under 
other  manifestations,  in  England,  even  beneath  the  shadows  of  a 
venerated  throne.  Principles  contended  for  there  had  a  deep  sig 
nificance  for  the  colonists,  because  they  were  vital  in  the  con 
stitution  of  a  free  people.  Perceiving  this  mutual  interest,  South 
Carolina,  at  about  this  time,  sent  more  than  ten  thousand  pounds 
currency  to  the  London  society  for  the  support  of  the  Bill  of 
Eights,  while  the  enlightened  people  of  England  sympathized  as 
warmly  with  their  American  brethren  in  their  struggle  for  the 
dearest  privileges  of  humanity.  The  warm  sympathies  of  Ireland, 
also,  were  awakened,  and  the  grand  idea  of  popular  sovereignty, 
flashing  abroad  at  this  time  over  the  public  mind,  started  Grattaii 
upon  his  great  and  wonderful  career  as  the  champion  of  civil  and 
religious  freedom. 

Then,  too,  in  the  manufacturing  districts  of  England,  the  people, 
for  the  first  time,  came  together  in  public  meetings  to  consult  upon 
public  affairs,  and  the  power  of  voluntary  assemblies  began  to  be 
felt  by  a  corrupt  Parliament.  The  press,  too,  exhibited  a  boldness 
hitherto  unknown,  and  Junius  dared  to  speak  through  it  to  the 
king  and  say :  "  Can  you  conceive  that  the  people  of  this  country 
will  long  submit  to  be  governed  by  so  flexible  a  house  of  commons  ? 
The  oppressed  people  of  Ireland  give  you,  every  day,  fresh  marks 
of  your  resentment.  The  colonies  left  their  native  land  for  free 
dom,  and  found  it  in  a  desert.  Looking  forward  to  independence, 
they  equally  detest  the  pageantry  of  a  king,  and  the  supercilious 
hypocrisy  of  a  bishop."  The  press  in  America  was  equally  bold, 
where  the  popular  assembly,  indigenous  to  the  soil,  had  become 
almost  an  institution ;  and  everywhere  these  noble  sentiments, 
uttered  in  the  parent-land,  found  a  hearty  response  in  every  part 


Mr.  38. j  THE  REGULATORS.  371 

of  our  broad  domain  where  a  free  hearthstone  was  planted,  and  the 
love  of  liberty  was  installed  as  a  household  deity.  Their  ears  were 
continually  bent  toward  the  stormy  Atlantic,  to  hear  tidings  from 
the  throne,  and  they  listened  with  inexpressible  delight  to  the 
voice  of  Chatham,  speaking  from  its  very  steps,  and  saying :  "  Call 
the  combinations  of  the  Americans  dangerous,  but  not  unwarrant 
able.  The  discontent  of  two  millions  of  people  should  be  treated 
candidly,  and  its  foundation  removed.  America  was  settled  upon 
ideas  of  liberty,  and  the  vine  has  taken  deep  root  and  spread 
throughout  the  land.  Long  may  it  flourish !  Let  slavery  exist 
nowhere  among  us;  for  whether  it  be  in  America  or  Ireland,  or 
here  at  home,  you  will  find  it  a  disease  which  spreads  by  contact, 
and  soon  reaches  from  the  extremity  to  the  heart." 

The  bold  manifestations  of  the  spirit  of  liberty  were  not  con 
fined  to  the  seaboard  cities  and  elder  communities.  Away  back 
among  the  border  settlements  of  the  Carolinas,  whence  the  hardy 
Boone  and  companions  went  forth  to  open  a  path  for  civilization 
over  the  mountains  to  the  fertile  valleys  of  the  Great  West,  it  had 
already  asserted  its  power  and  received  the  applause  of  the  wise 
and  good.  We  need  not  stop  here  to  record  the  details  of  oppres 
sive  measures  which  aroused  the  spirit  of  resistance  there.  It  is  the 
common  story  of  official  rapacity,  arrogant  assumptions,  and  utter 
disregard  of  the  rights  and  feelings  of  the  people.  Extortions  in 
every  form  compelled  the  inhabitants  to  lift  the  arm  of  stout  resist 
ance.  They  first  met  in  public  assemblies  to  consult.  Then  they 
petitioned  for  a  redress  of  grievances,  but  the  local  authorities,  imi 
tating  the  imperial  government,  treated  their  respectful  representa 
tion  with  contempt.  At  length  they  formed  a  league  called  THE 
REGULATION,  took  power  into  their  own  hands,  and  prepared  to  re 
dress  their  own  grievances.  This  remarkable  movement  was  chiefly 
in  the  vicinity  of  Hillsborough,  in  North  Carolina.  At  the  close  of 
1770,  the  Regulators  throughout  that  region  became  too  numerous 
and  strong  to  be  overcome  by  local  magistrates,  and  Try  on,  the 
royal  governor  of  the  province,  marched  against  them  with  a  con 
siderable  body  of  militia.  They  had  committed  grave  offences. 


372  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1771. 

They  had  passed  resolutions  equivalent,  in  spirit,  to  a  declaration 
of  independence;  and  they  had  dared  to  laugh  at  the  official 
frowns  of  men  sent  to  exercise  authority  over  them  as  sheriffs  and 
judges. 

Tryon  pressed  forward  to  the  borders  of  the  "rebel"  domain  in 
the  spring  of  1771.  At  Hillsborough  he  publicly  invited  "every 
person"  to  shoot  the  four  principal  leaders  of  the  Regulators,*  and 
offered  one  hundred  pounds  and  a  thousand  acres  of  land,  as  a 
reward  for  the  delivery  of  either  of  them,  alive  or  dead.  Then 
penetrating  the  country  to  the  Allamance  creek,  he  fought  and 
defeated  the  Regulators  on  the  banks  of  that  stream.  After  surfeit 
ing  his  vengeance  by  hanging  six  of  them  who  were  taken  pris 
oners,  he  marched  back  in  triumph  to  Newbern,  in  June,  to  enjoy 
the  luxuries  of  a  palace  he  had  built  there  at  the  expense  of  a 
people  who  hated  and  despised  him. 

The  movements  of  the  Regulators,  and  the  result  of  the  battle  on 
the  Allamance,  form  an  important  episode  in  the  history  of  our  Rev 
olution.  The  fiercest  hatred  of  British  power  was  aroused  at  the 
South,  which  stimulated  that  earnest  patriotism  so  early  displayed 
by  the  people  below  the  Roanoke,  when  the  war  for  independence 
was  kindled.  That  defeat  did  not  break  the  spirits  of  the  patriots ; 
and  many,  determined  no  longer  to  suffer  the  oppressions  of  extor 
tioners,  abandoned  their  homes,  with  their  wives  and  children,  went 
beyond  the  mountains,  and  planted  settlements  in  the  fertile  valleys 
of  Tennessee. 

*  Herman  Husband,  a  quaker  from  Pennsylvania,  James  Hunter,  Rednap  Howell,  from  New 
Jersey,  and  William  Butler. 


T.  39.1  A  STUDENT  OF  EVENTS  373 


CHAPTER   XXXV. 

WASHINGTON  AT  MOUNT  VERNON HIS  PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  COMING  STRUGGLE 

LORD     DUNMORE    GOVERNOR THE    PRIDE    OF    THE    VIRGINIANS    TOUCHED 

CHARACTER     OF     DUNMORE HIS     FRIENDSHIP     FOR     WASHINGTON DOMESTIC 

AFFAIRS  AT  MOUNT  VERNON JOHN    PARKE  CUSTIS HIS    LOVE  AND    MARRIAGE 

DEATH  OF  HIS  SISTER THE  BURGESSES  AND  THE  SLAVE-TRADE DESTRUC 
TION  OF  THE  GASPE VIRGINIA  ASSEMBLY  AND  GOVERNOR  DUNMORE COM 
MITTEE  OF  CORRESPONDENCE ACTION  OF  VIRGINIA  AND  MASSACHUSETTS 

DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  VIRGINIA  ASSEMBLY WASHINGTON  AND  HIS  COMPATRIOTS. 

WHILE  the  commotions  in  the  political  world  which  we  have  just 
considered,  were  agitating  society,  and  calling  patriots  here  and 
there  from  narrow  provincial  spheres  of  duty  to  an  arena  broad 
and  national,  Washington  yet  remained  at  Mount  Vernon  an 
earnest  spectator  and  diligent  student  of  passing  events.  The 
time  had  not  yet  arrived  when  he  should  go  forth  panoplied  for  the 
great  contest  that  was  to  bring  deliverance  to  his  country.  He 
who  was  to  be  the  chief  champion  was  then  preparing  for  the  lists, 
while  others  went  out  as  heralds  and  sounded  the  trumpets  for 
battle.  No  sound  from  the  mother-country  escaped  his  quick  ear; 
no  movement  of  monarch,  ministers,  or  people  there,  eluded  his 
vigilant  eye ;  no  sentiment  that  stirred  his  countrymen  was  left 
ungarnered  in  his  heart;  and  these  he  studied  with  the  calmness 
of  a  hero  and  sage,  analyzed  with  the  acuteness  of  a  philoso 
pher,  and  arranged,  classified,  and  combined  into  a  momentous 
syllogism,  with  all  the  skill  of  an  expert  logician.  The  conclusion 
formed  the  polar-star  of  his  destiny,  and  upon  it  he  fixed  his  clear 
vision.  He  perceived  every  omen  of  the  approaching  tempest,  in 
whose  scope  and  result  he  was  deeply  interested ;  and  the  faintest 
mutterings  of  the  distant  thunder  in  the  political  horizon,  conveyed 
to  him  audible  lessons  of  deep  significance.  He  knew  that  a  crisis 


374  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1771. 

was  approaching.  He  had  well  considered  the  growing  discontents 
of  his  own  time,  and  the  records  of  grievances  in  the  more  remote 
past,  with  the  solemn  attention  of  a  statesman;  and  he  felt  the 
assurance  of  a  prophetic  spirit  within  him,  that  a  great  struggle 
between  old  and  new  ideas — between  right  and  might — between 
liberty  and  despotism  —  must  soon  commence  in  his  beloved  coun 
try,  and  that  he  must  fight  valiantly  for  the  right.  By  serious 
meditation,  daily  observations,  comparison  of  sentiments  with 
others,  faith  in  the  power  of  truth,  and  reliance  upon  God  for 
guidance,  he  was  forging  for  himself  that  invincible  armor  of  pa 
triotism  and  true  courage,  with  which,  a  little  later,  he  went  into 
the  long-expected  conflict  as  the  Joshua  of  the  chosen. 

In  the  midst  of  the  contemplation  of  these  great  events,  and 
while  feeling  the  longings  of  his  spirit  to  be  abroad  marshalling  the 
people  for  battle,  he  was  not  forgetful  nor  neglectful  of  the  minor 
duties  of  life.  He  was  the  same  affectionate  husband  and  foster- 
father,  the  same  careful  husbandman,  the  same  kind  and  social 
neighbor,  the  same  wise  local  legislator,  and  the  same  active  and 
sympathizing  friend  of  his  neglected  companions-iii-arms. 

The  death  of  the  amiable  Botetourt,  whose  conciliatory  adminis 
tration  had  soothed  the  troubled  spirit  of  Virginia,  was  the  signal 
for  a  great  change  in  public  sentiment.  John  Murray,  earl  of 
Dunmore,  who  had  succeeded  Sir  Henry  Moore,  as  governor  of 
New  York,  in  1770,  was  transferred  to  Virginia,  as  Botetourt's  suc 
cessor.  At  that  time,  New  York  city  was  gay  and  luxurious,  com 
pared  with  the  capital  of  Virginia ;  and  his  lordship,  who  was  fond 
of  display,  lingered  there  so  long,  leaving  the  government  of  the 
Old  Dominion  with  Nelson,  president  of  the  council,  and  his  own 
military  secretary,  Captain  Foy,  that  the  pride  of  the  Virginians 
was  touched,  and  on  his  occasional  visits,  and  final  arrival  to  make 
a  permanent  residence,  he  discovered  a  temper  in  the  people  not  at 
all  attractive  to  him.  They  had  already  become  acquainted  with 
his  character,  through  the  voice  of  rumor,  and  felt  warranted  in 
pre-judging  him. 

Lord  Dunmore  was  descended  fiom  an  ancient  Scotch  family; 


JEr.  39.]  WASHINGTON  AND  DUNMORE.  375 

was  full  of  aristocratic  ideas ;  was  deficient  in  sound  judgment,  and 
that  common  sense  so  essential  in  public  life ;  and  was  possessed  of 
an  irritable  temper  and  vindictive  spirit.  No  man  could  have  been 
more  unsuited  for  such  a  position  at  such  a  time,  than  Lord  Dun- 
more,  and  his  administration  was  marked  by  almost  incessant  con 
tests  with  the  people  and  their  representatives,  who  felt  keenly  the 
contrast  between  him  and  the  beloved  Botetourt.  Yet  friendly 
relations  existed  between  Washington  and  the  governor,  notwith 
standing  the  former  took  a  prominent  part  in  the  popular  move 
ments  in  Virginia.  Their  political  differences  did  not  disturb  their 
pleasant  personal  relations.  Dunmore  appeared  to  comprehend  and 
value  the  noble  character  of  Colonel  Washington,  and  he  frequently 
availed  himself  of  his  experience,  especially  in  military  affairs,  in 
the  management  of  the  concerns  of  the  colony.  In  the  summer 
of  1771,  we  find  Washington  taking  advantage  of  this  personal 
friendship,  to  urge,  anew,  the  claims  of  the  soldiers  to  bounty  lands. 
Dunmore  was  at  Williamsburg  early  in  June,  where  Washington 
had  a  conference  with  him  upon  the  subject,  and  obtained  from 
him  a  promise,  that  they  might  take  such  steps,  at  their  own  risk 
and  expense,  as  other  settlers,  to  secure  their  lands  agreeably  to 
the  proclamation  of  Dinwiddie,  in  1754.  On  his  return  to  Mount 
Vernon,  he  addressed  a  letter  to  Dunmore,  repeating  his  urgent 
solicitations  in  behalf  of  his  companions-in-arms.  As  we  have 
already  noticed,  the  efforts  of  Colonel  Washington  were  successful, 
and  many  a  soldier  and  his  family  had  reason  to  bless  him  all  their 
lives. 

Domestic  affairs  at  Mount  Yernon,  especially  those  that  related 
to  the  children  of  Mrs.  Washington,  occupied  the  serious  attention 
of  her  husband  at  this  time.  For  several  months  the  health  of  her 
daughter  had  been  failing.  It  had  now  become  evident  that  pul 
monary  consumption  was  wasting  her  vital  energies,  and  that  no 
earthly  power  could  stay  its  ravages.  The  hopes  of  the  mother 
now  centred  in  her  son,  John  Parke  Custis,  then  between  sixteen 
and  seventeen  years  of  age.  He  was  a  very  lively  youth,  with  a 
susceptible  and  impulsive  temperament,  and  possessed  a  large  hide- 


376  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1772. 

pendent  fortune.*  His  mother,  made  doubly  tender  toward  him 
on  account  of  the  declining  health  of  his  sister,  was  extremely 
indulgent  to  her  son,  and  she  often  pleaded  in  his  behalf  when 
Washington  found  it  necessary  to  exercise  a  wholsome  restraint 
upon  him.  These  circumstances  combined,  rendered  the  guardian 
ship  of  young  Custis  a  delicate  and  sometimes  difficult  task.  Yet 
Washington,  with  steady  hand,  did  not  depart  from  the  line  of 
duty  which  his  conscience  and  his  judgment  prescribed. 

Young  Custis  wras  placed  under  the  care  of  the  Reverend  Jona 
than  Boucher,  an  episcopal  clergyman  residing  at  Annapolis,  to  be 
educated,  but  the  wayward  boy  was  frequently  away  from  his 
studies,  engaged  in  fox-hunting  and  other  amusements  at  Mount 
Vernon  and  elsewhere.  He  soon  became  impatient  of  the  neces 
sary  restraints  of  the  school-room  and  allotted  lessons,  and  con 
ceived  a  strong  desire  for  travel.  Soon  after  Washington's  return 
from  his  tour  to  the  Ohio  country,  in  1770,  he  was  pained  to  find 
that  a  scheme  for  sending  the  lad  abroad,  with  his  tutor,  was  al 
ready  matured,  notwithstanding  the  mother  felt  a  great  reluctance 
to  have  him  absent  while  his  sister  was  so  ill.  Washington  mildly 
but  firmly  opposed  the  scheme.  He  saw  the  folly  of  allowing 
such  an  interruption  of  the  studies  of  young  Custis,  and  per 
mitting  him  to  travel,  without  suitable  acquirements,  merely  to 
gratify  an  idle  curiosity.  These  objections,  and  others  concerning 
the  heavy  expenses  to  be  incurred  at  that  time,  when  a  chancery 
suit  against  the  young  man's  estate  was  pending,  were  presented 
by  Washington  to  Mr.  Boucher  and  his  pupil,  in  such  a  way  that 
the  scheme  was  abandoned,  and  the  lad  continued  his  studies, 
though  in  the  same  irregular  way. 

A  stronger  passion  than  a  desire  to  travel  now  diverted  young 
Custis  from  his  studies.  He  became  deeply  enamored  of  the 
second  daughter  of  Benjamin  Calvert,  Esq,  of  Maryland,  and  it 

*  The  estate  of  John  Parke  Custis,  according  to  a  letter  written  by  Washington  to  Benedict 
Calvert,  Esq.,  of  Maryland,  in  April,  1773,  consisted  of  fifteen  thousand  acres  of  land  adjoining  the 
city  of  Williamsburg,  and  none  of  it  forty  miles  from  that  place ;  several  lots  in  that  city ;  between 
two  and  three  hundred  negroes ;  and  almost  ten  thousand  pounds  upon  bond,  and  in  the  hands  of 
merchants.  That  estate  he  held  independent  of  his  mother's  dower,  which  would  be  an  addition  to 
it  ut  her  death 


L 


m,t.  40.]  A  MARRIAGE  POSTPONED.  377 

was  discovered,  at  the  close  of  1772,  that  they  had  formed  a  matri 
monial  engagement.  This  gave  Washington  much  concern.  He 
was  as  strongly  opposed  to  premature  marriages  as  to  premature 
travel,  and  on  the  third  of  April  he  addressed  a  most  judicious 
letter  to  the  young  lady's  father,  on  the  subject:  "How  far  a  union 
of  this  sort,"  he  said,  "  may  be  agreeable  to  you,  you  can  best  tell ; 
but  I  should  think  myself  wanting  in  candor,  were  I  not  to  confess, 
that  Miss  Nelly's  amiable  qualities  are  acknowledged  on  all  hands, 
and  that  an  alliance  with  your  family  will  be  pleasing  to  his."* 
Washington  then  spoke  of  the  extreme  youth,  inexperience,  and 
deficient  education  of  Master  Custis,  as  insuperable  objections  to 
the  speedy  completion  of  the  marriage.  He  considered  it  his  duty, 
as  his  guardian,  to  endeavor  to  carry  him  through  a  regular  course 
of  education,  and  "  to  guard  his  youth  to  a  more  advanced  age, 
before  an  event,  on  which  his  own  peace  and  the  happiness  of  an 
other  were  to  depend,"  should  take  place.  "  Not  that  I  have  any 
doubt,"  he  added,  "  of  the  warmth  of  his  affections,  nor,  I  hope  I 
may  add,  any  fears  of  a  change  in  them ;  but  at  present  I  do  not 
conceive  that  he  is  capable  of  bestowing  that  attention  to  the  im 
portant  consequences  of  the  married  state,  which  is  necessary  to  be 
given  by  those  who  are  about  to  enter  into  it,  and,  of  course,  I  am 
unwilling  he  should  do  it  till  he  is.  If  the  affection,  which  they 
have  avowed  for  each  other,  is  fixed  upon  a  solid  basis,  it  will 
receive  no  diminution  in  the  course  of  two  or  three  years,  in  which 
time  he  may  prosecute  his  studies,  and  thereby  render  himself 
more  deserving  of  the  lady  and  useful  to  society.  If,  unfortunately, 
as  they  are  both  young,  there  should  be  an  abatement  of  affection 
on  either  side,  or  both,  it  had  better  precede  than  follow  marriage. 
Delivering  my  sentiments  thus  freely,  will  not,  I  hope,  lead  you 
into  a  belief,  that  I  am  desirous  of  breaking  off  the  match.  To 
postpone  it  is  all  I  have  in  view;  for  I  shall  recommend  to  the 
young  gentleman,  with  the  warmth  that  becomes  a  man  of  honor 
(notwithstanding  he  did  not  vouchsafe  to  consult  either  his  mother 

*  Mr.  Calvert  was  of  the  family  of  Lord  Baltimore,  and  in  wealth  and  social  position,  was  not 
surpassed  by  any  in  the  country. 


378  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1773. 

or  me  on  the  occasion),  to  consider  himself  as  much  engaged  to 
your  daughter,  as  if  the  indissoluble  knot  were  tied ;  and,  as  the 
surest  means  of  effecting  this,  to  apply  himself  closely  to  his  studies 
(and  in  this  advice  I  flatter  myself  you  will  join  me),  by  which 
means  he  will,  in  a  great  measure,  avoid  those  little  flirtations  with 
other  young  ladies,  that  may,  by  dividing  the  attention,  contribute 
not  a  little  to  divide  the  affection." 

These  suggestions  of  Washington  were  approved  by  Mr.  Calvert, 
and  it  was  agreed  that  young  Custis  should  pass  two  years  at  col 
lege  before  marriage.  At  that  time  King's  (now  Columbia)  college, 
in  New  York,  had  a  very  high  reputation  under  the  presidency  of 
Eeverend  Myles  Cooper,  D.  D.,  and  he  was  placed  in  that  institution. 
Washington  accompanied  him  to  New  York,  and  on  that  occasion 
he  saw  Alexander  Hamilton  for  the  first  time,  who  was  then  one  of 
the  most  active  students  in  King's  college. 

Young  Custis  pursued  his  studies  diligently,  and  received  the 
sincere  approbation  of  the  president.  His  betrothal  gave  him  a 
topic  for  serious  reflection ;  and  the  loss  of  his  sister,  in  the  summer 
of  1773,  greatly  subdued  his  wayward  spirit.  That  young  lady 
expired  at  Mount  Yernon,  on  the  nineteenth  of  June,  when  in  the 
seventeenth  year  of  her  age.  Her  death  was  a  severe  blow  to 
Washington.  Her  gentleness  had  greatly  endeared  her  to  him,  and 
his  feelings  toward  her  were  truly  paternal.  He  had  been  absent 
at  Williamsburg  for  some  time,  and  had  made  arrangements  to  ac 
company  Lord  Dunmore  on  a  long  tour  of  observation  beyond  the 
mountains.  On  his  return  home  he  found  Miss  Custis  in  the  last 
stage  of  consumption.  The  manly  spirit  of  Washington  was  bowed 
with  grief,  and  in  deep  affliction  he  knelt  at  her  bedside,  and  prayed 
earnestly  for  her  recovery.  Her  departure  left  a  great  void  in  her 
mother's  heart,  and  Washington  remained  in  the  seclusion  of  Mount 
Yernon  to  console  his  wife,  instead  of  making  the  intended  journey 
with  the  governor. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  year,  young  Custis,  who  maintained  a 
continual  epistolary  correspondence  with  Miss  Calvert,  became 
impatient  for  a  closer  union  with  her.  His  mother,  more  indulgent 


MT.  40.]  SLAVERY  IN  VIRGINIA.  379 

than  ever  toward  her  only  remaining  child,  consented,  and  Wash 
ington  did  not  interpose  serious  objections.  "It  has  been  against 
my  wishes,"  he  wrote  to  Doctor  Cooper,  in  December,  "that  he 
should  quit  college,  in  order  that  he  may  enter  soon  into  a  new 
scene  of  life,  which  I  think  he  would  be  much  fitter  for  some  years 
hence  than  now.  But  having  his  own  inclination,  the  desires  of 
his  mother,  and  the  acquiescence  of  almost  all  his  relatives  to 
encounter,  I  did  not  care,  as  he  is  the  last  of  the  family,  to  push 
my  opposition  too  far,  and  I  have  therefore  submitted  to  a  kind  of 
necessity."  Mr.  Custis  was  permitted  to  leave  college,  and  he  spent 
a  portion  of  the  Christmas  holydays  of  1773  with  his  affianced. 
They  were  married  on  the  third  of  February,  1774,  when  the 
bridegroom  was  not  yet  twenty  years  of  age. 

Lord  Dunrnore  did  not  make  Virginia  his  residence  until  in  the 
summer  of  1772.  At  that  time  the  current  of  popular  feeling  in 
America,  against  the  imperial  government,  was  as  strong  as  ever, 
but  not  so  turbulent,  for  no  event  of  sufficient  importance  to  stir 
up  the  whole  body  of  the  colonists  had  recently  occurred.  But 
local  disputes  were  irritating  the  people  everywhere.  In  Virginia 
the  efforts  of  legislators  had  been  strongly  put  forth,  for  several 
years,  to  cast  off  the  burden  of  negro-slavery  from  the  province. 
We  have  already  observed  Thomas  Jefferson  rising  into  notice 
upon  that  topic,  as  the  champion  of  emancipation.  Again  and 
again  they  had  passed  laws  restraining  the  importation  of  negroes 
from  Africa,  but  these  enactments  had  always  been  disallowed  by 
the  higher  authority;  and  in  the  year  1770,  the  king  issued  in 
structions,  over  his  own  signature,  commanding  the  governor, 
"upon  pain  of  the  highest  displeasure,  to  assent  to  no  law  by 
which  the  importation  of  slaves  should  be  in  any  respect  prohib 
ited  or  obstructed." 

Yet  the  Virginians  were  not  discouraged.  They  saw  the  light 
of  hope  in  the  future,  and  took  heart.  In  April,  1772,  the  bar 
barous  instructions  of  the  king  were  freely  debated  in  the  Virginia 
assembly,  and  the  votes  of  Washington,  Lee,  Jefferson,  Nicholas, 
Bland,  Henry,  and  other  patriots,  were  cast  for  a  resolution  autho- 


380  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1772. 

rizing  the  transmission  of  an  address  to  the  king,  in  which  they 
said :  "  We  are  sensible  that  some  of  your  majesty's  subjects  in 
Great  Britain  may  reap  emoluments  from  this  traffic ;  but  when  we 
consider,  that  it  greatly  retards  the  settlement  of  the  colonies  with 
more  useful  inhabitants,  and  may,  in  time,  have  the  most  destruc 
tive  influence,  we  presume  to  hope  that  the  interest  of  a  few  will 
be  disregarded,  when  placed  in  competition  with  the  security  and 
happiness  of  such  members  of  your  majesty's  dutiful  and  loyal 
subjects.  Deeply  impressed  with  these  sentiments,  we  most  hum 
bly  beseech  your  majesty  to  remove  all  those  restraints  on  your 
majesty's  governors  of  these  colonies,  which  inhibit  their  assenting 
to  such  laws,  as  might  check  so  very  pernicious  a  commerce."  The 
Virginians  would  not  address  Parliament  on  the  subject,  because 
that  would  be  an  acknowledgment  of  its  right  to  interfere  in  their 
domestic  concerns,  so  they  made  their  appeal  directly  to  the  throne. 
It  was  unavailing,  for  the  king's  ear  was  now  deaf  to  all  reason 
from  his  transatlantic  subjects. 

In  New  England,  fresh  causes  for  irritation  now  began  to  appear. 
The  commander  of  the  armed  British  schooner  Gaspe,  stationed  in 
Narraganset  bay  to  assist  the  commissioners  of  customs  in  en 
forcing  the  revenue  laws,  greatly  annoyed  the  American  navigators 
in  those  waters,  without  deigning  to  exhibit  any  evidence  of  his 
authority.  He  haughtily  commanded  them  to  lower  their  colors 
when  they  passed  his  vessel,  in  token  of  obedience.  The  William 
Tells  of  the  bay  refused  to  bow  to  the  cap  of  this  petty  Gesler ; 
and  the  governor  of  Rhode  Island  sent  the  sheriff  on  board,  to 
inquire  under  what  authority  Lieutenant  Duddington  acted.  That 
officer  referred  the  subject  to  the  British  admiral,  Montagu,  at 
Boston,  who  insolently  answered  the  governor:  "The  lieutenant, 
sir,  has  done  his  duty,  I  shall  give  the  king's  officers  directions  that 
they  send  every  man  taken  in  molesting  them  to  me.  As  sure  as 
the  people  of  Newport  attempt  to  rescue  any  vessel,  and  any  of 
them  are  taken,  I  will  hang  them  as  pirates."  The  people  laughed 
at  this  pompous  threat;  and  when,  on  the  ninth  of  June,  the 
Gaspe  grounded  upon  a  shoal  while  chasing  a  Providence  schooner 


denied   uTere;  At  kiigth  circumstances  compelled  him   c< 

convene  the  burgesses  on  the  third  of  March,  1773. 

hirigtou  was  in  his  seat  at  the  opening  i, 

«  aho/rt  but  a  memorable  one  in  the  annals  of  the  republic,  lor  a 

-are  of  the  greatest  importance   to   the  colon '.e-  \vus  proposes 

executed  by  the  bold  patriots  of  \vhich  that  assembly  was  com- 

j.d.      The  Hheme  had  already  assumed  a  ian^ibJe  t'onn  in  the 

F  ^C"  :-ral  of  tin*  members,  lor  the  ])roceedin^s  of  the  iiicncls 

>ertt  '11\af   measure  was.  the  na- 

•.  iSV>tivr 


he  ruimt-r-  •>! '  Jaiue^  <  >li,<.  Samuel  Adams,  and  Joseph  Warren 
p  «'U'u,r  lu  every  American  enizcn.     'T'ho  cou.ilr^/  quickly  re- 
and  committees  were  soon  oranized  i;*  •  Sj*ft^    «  •••W.M 


This  AY  as  a  bold  step  toward  a  f,s  »>!e..- 

lion.  Oft  thopScond  day-of  the*  scissijo'i  <>i  (ho  biu'ire^  ;ij^t  aihid«-: 
to,  tile  assembly  rc^v -\ V:M}'  e^el}'  ir«f«.»  -i  ^ui;  mi"ieie  "r  ;]»«.-  xvi;^le  ho;!? 
on  the  .^ato- ol*  the  t/-  •[  ivharlotte,  brotiiei 

tn-law  ot  Jefierson.  -      .  *    -   -.  •  : 


couiuiitt  «f  {•      Th:     ih't  i.  ure   liucl   been  coTicei'ted 

the  *-ve».  ::-u>        -^   in   tb«-  Apoilo-ro^m   of  tiie 

Jialeigl.  rrh;;t  cuueus 

Henry,  Henry  L^                  i.ii.-raibot  Lee.  Ti ;:.••";;.»>  Jel'erson. 


.  41.]  HUTCHINSON'S  LETTERS.  385 


CHAPTEK   XXXVI. 

HUTCHINSON'S  LETTERS  —  THEIR  EFFECTS  IN  MASSACHUSETTS — TREATMENT  OP 
FRANKLIN NEW  PHASE  IN  THE  TEA  DUTY THE  EAST  INDIA  COMPANY TEA- 
SHIPS  SAIL  FOR  AMERICA THEIR  FATE DESTRUCTION  OF  TEA  AT  BOSTON 

EFFECTS  OF  THE  MEASURE RETALIATORY  ACTS  OF  PARLIAMENT EFFECTS  IN 

THE  COLONIES DESIRES  OF  THE   PEOPLE FRANKLIN'S   RECOMMENDATION 

MOVEMENTS  IN  VIRGINIA SCENES  AT  THE  CAPITAL THE  PORT-BILL  AND  THE 

VIRGINIA  BURGESSES DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY A  CONVENTION GEN 
ERAL    CONGRESS    PROPOSED BALL    TO    LADY   DUNMORE NON-IMPORTATION 

LEAGUE CONVENTION  CALLED FAST  DAY  AT  WILLIAMSBURG WASHINGTON 

RETURNS  TO  MOUNT  VERNON. 

IN  the  summer  of  1773,  new  causes  for  irritation  affected  the 
public  mind  in  Massachusetts,  and  touched  chords  of  sympathy  in 
the  other  colonies.  Hutchinson  had  been  commissioned  governor 
in  1771 ;  and,  though  a  native  born,  he  was  as  great  an  enemy  to 
free  institutions  as  any  member  of  the  British  aristocracy  who  had 
been  sent  to  rule  the  Americans.  He  perceived  the  ominous  heavings 
of  the  volcano  of  public  sentiment  upon  which  his  power  and  place 
were  seated,  and  he  was  uneasy.  Earnestly  coveting  security  and 
the  emoluments  of  office,  he  wrote  many  letters  to  the  ministry 
and  others,  advising  a  concentration  of  power  in  the  colonies,  by 
military  control,  and  an  abridgment  of  the  liberties  of  the  people, 
at  the  same  time  he  was  hypocritically  pretending  to  be  their 
sincere  friend.  His  words  were  believed  by  many,  and  a  better 
feeling  was  germinating  in  Massachusetts,  when  his  duplicity  was 
discovered  and  exposed.  Doctor  Franklin,  in  England,  had  pro 
cured  a  number  of  his  letters  and  sent  them  to  the  friends  of  liberty 
in  Boston.  For  some  time  they  were  privately  perused  by  patriots 
in  different  parts  of  the  province ;  and  on  the  second  of  June, 
Samuel  Adams  read  them  in  a  secret  session  of  the  assembly. 

25 


386  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPH\  .  [1773. 

With  bitter  scorn  that  body  voted,  "  that  the  tendency  and  design 
of  the  letters  were  to  subvert  the  constitution  of  the  government, 
and  to  introduce  arbitrary  power  into  the  province."  Hutchinson 
tried  the  arts  of  falsehood  and  prevarication  to  conceal  his  crime ; 
and  he  wrote  to  his  confidential  friend  in  London,  to  burn  such  of 
his  letters  as  might  be  prejudicial  to  him  —  "for,"  he  said,  "I  have 
wrote  what  ought  not  to  be  made  public."  It  was  too  late.  Suffi 
cient  proof  of  his  guilt  was  abroad ;  and  when  the  letters  of 
Hutchinson  and  his  lieutenant,  Andrew  Oliver  (who  was  equally 
culpable),  were  made  public,  the  indignation  of  the  people  was 
intense.*  A  petition  soon  went  to  the  king,  asking  him  to  remove 
Hutchinson  and  Oliver  for  ever  from  the  government.  The  storm 
was  furious,  and  these  misguided  men  were  compelled  to  bend  to  it. 
But  they  were  not  then  swept  away.  The  political  atmosphere 
was  purified  by  it,  and  the  people  were  made  stronger  for  the 
greater  tempest  then  near  at  hand. 

Early  in  1773,  a  new  thought  upon  taxation  entered  the  brain 
of  Lord  North.  The  British  East  India  Company-j-  having  lost 
their  valuable  tea-customers  in  America,  by  the  operation  of  the 
non-importation  associations,  and  having  more  than  seventeen  mil 
lions  of  pounds  of  the  herb  in  their  warehouses  in  England,  peti- 

*  The  publication  of  these  letters  produced  much  excitement  in  England,  and  Franklin,  to  defend 
innocent  persons  from  censure,  generously  came  forward  and  took  upon  himself  the  whole  responsi 
bility.  He  was  accordingly  summoned  before  the  privy  council,  and  there  he  was  grossly  abused 
and  insulted,  by  Wedderburne,  the  solicitor-general.  On  going  to  his  lodgings  that  night,  the  ven 
erable  and  virtuous  sage  took  off  his  suit  of  figured  Manchester  velvet,  which  he  had  worn  before 
the  council,  and  declared  that  he  would  never  put  it  on  again  until  he  should  sign  the  degrada 
tion  of  England,  and  the  independence  of  America.  He  kept  his  word,  and  more  than  ten  years 
afterward,  when,  on  third  of  September,  1783,  he  signed  a  definitive  treaty  of  peace  with  Great 
Britain,  on  the  basis  of  absolute  independence  for  America,  he  wore  the  same  suit  of  clothes,  for 
the  first  time  after  his  vow  was  made.  Franklin  was  not  only  insulted,  but  the  office  of  postmaster- 
general  of  the  colonies,  was  taken  from  him.  Mark  the  contrast.  When  he  died  the  civilized  world 
said :  "  Franklin  is  dead !"  and  wept.  When  Wedderburne  died  in  obscurity,  the  king  said : 
"  Then  he  has  not  left  a  gi-eater  knave  behind  him  in  my  dominion." 

t  The  East  India  Company,  still  in  existence,  is  a  vast  commercial  monopoly.  It  is  a  joint-stock 
company,  originally  established  to  carry  on  a  trade  by  sea,  between  England  and  the  countries  lying 
eastward  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  It  was  incorporated  by  a  royal  charter  in  the  year  1600,  and 
was  united,  in  1702,  with  a  similar  company  chartered  in  1688.  It  enjoyed  the  rich  commerce  of 
the  East  for  almost  two  hundred  and  fifty  years,  and  planted  the  British  empire  in  India,  first  by 
establishing  armed  factories  there,  and  finally,  by  the  conquest  of  small  territories,  under  the  pre 
tence  of  securing  honest  trade.  The  monopoly  of  the  Chinese  trade,  which  this  company  had  en 
joyed  for  so  many  generations,  was  abolished  in  1833.  At  the  period  we  are  considering,  the  East 
India  Company  was  at  the  height  of  its  success,  commercial  and  political. 


j£T.  41.]  THE  EAST  INDIA  COMPANY.  387 

tioned  Parliament  to  take  off  the  duty  of  three  pence  a  pound, 
which  was  levied  upon  the  article  imported  into  the  colonies. 
Regarding  it  as  a  question  of  revenue,  the  company  offered  to  pay 
the  government  more  than  an  equal  amount  in  export  duty,  if  the 
change  should  be  made.  Here  was  an  excellent  opportunity  for 
the  government  to  act  justly  and  wisely,  and  to  bring  about  a 
perfect  reconciliation  with  the  colonies ;  but  the  stupid  ministry,  as 
tenacious  of  the  asserted  rights  of  Parliament  as  ever  the  Stuarts 
were  of  the  royal  prerogatives,  fearing  such  a  measure  might  be 
considered  a  submission  to  "rebellious  subjects/'  refused  this  prof 
fered  olive-branch  of  peace.  But,  blindly  misapprehending  the 
real  question  at  issue,  North  introduced  a  bill  into  Parliament 
allowing  the  company  to  send  their  teas  to  America  on  their  own 
account,  without  paying  an  export  duty.  As  this  would  make  tea 
cheaper  in  America  than  in  England,  the  minister  concluded  that 
the  colonists  would  not  object  to  paying  the  three  pence  duty. 
This  concession  to  a  commercial  monopoly,  while  the  appeals  of  a 
great  principle  were  spurned,  wras  a  new  and  aggravated  offence, 
and  created  great  indignation  and  contempt  throughout  the  col 
onies. 

The  East  India  Company,  as  blind  as  the  minister,  now  regarded 
the  American  market  as  open  for  their  tea,  and  soon  after  the  pas 
sage  of  the  bill,  they  sent  over  several  large  ships  laden  with  the 
article.  The  colonists  had  warned  them  that  their  adventure  would 
be  a  loss,  but  North  had  assured  them  that  the  king  was  firm,  and 
meant  to  try  the  question  with  the  Americans.  The  latter  were 
fully  prepared  for  the  issue.  They  disliked  the  odious  monopoly, 
and  they  were  determined  to  oppose  the  enforcement  of  the  im 
post  at  all  hazards. 

The  people  in  the  seaboard  towns  were  informed  of  the  ap 
proaching  ships,  and  the  consignees  were  known  and  marked. 
Almost  at  the  same  time,  these  vessels  entered  the  harbors  of  Bos 
ton,  New  York,  Philadelphia,  Annapolis,  Wilmington,  and  Charles 
ton.  Not  a  pound  of  any  cargo  was  allowed  to  be  sold.  From 
some  ports  the  ships  left  for  England  without  removing  their 


388  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1773. 

hatches ;  in  others  the  tea  was  stored  or  destroyed.  At  Boston  it 
led  to  a  violent  popular  commotion.  Two  tea-ships  were  moored 
at  a  wharf,  and  the  consignees,  friends  of  Governor  Hutchinson, 
acting  under  his  advice,  resolved  to  unload  the  vessels  in  spite  of 
the  menaces  of  the  people.  The  inhabitants  gathered  daily  in 
public  meetings  to  discuss  the  matter,  and  to  perform  the  duties  of 
a  monster  vigilance  committee.  At  length,  on  a  cold  moonlight 
evening  in  December,  at  the  close  of  one  of  these  meetings,  at 
twilight,  a  large  number  of  people,  disguised  as  Indians,  moving  in 
concert  according  to  a  previous  arrangement,  boarded  these  vessels, 
broke  open  the  hatches,  and  in  the  course  of  two  hours  shattered 
three  hundred  and  forty-two  chests  of  tea,  and  cast  their  con 
tents  in  the  waters  of  the  harbor.  Samuel  Adams  was  one  of  the 
principal  leaders  in  this  movement;  and  the  next  morning  the 
committee  of  correspondence  appointed  that  inflexible  patriot  and 
four  others,  to  draw  up  a  declaration  of  what  had  been  done,  to 
send  forth  to  the  world. 

This  event  produced  a  powerful  sensation  throughout  the  British 
realm.  It  was  considered  an  overt  act  of  treason,  and  the  govern 
ment,  impotent  to  punish  it  in  the  usual  form,  proceeded  to  adopt 
harsh  retaliatory  measures.  When  intelligence  of  the  event  spread 
over  the  colonies,  it  produced  joy  and  sympathy.  Yet  justice  was 
not  asleep.  The  patriots  respected  private  property,  and  at  the 
suggestion  of  Doctor  Franklin,  an  offer  was  made  to  pay  the  East 
India  Company  for  every  ounce  of  tea  destroyed.  But  the  arm  of 
government  vengeance  was  raised,  and  it  must  fall.  Nothing  could 
appease  the  angry  ministry.  "  Boston  is  the  ringleader  in  every 
riot,  and  sets  always  the  example  which  others  follow,"  exclaimed 
North.  "  The  Americans  are  never  actuated  by  decency  or  reason ; 
they  always  choose  tarring  and  feathering  as  an  argument,"  said  a 
ministerial  membrr  of  Parliament;  while  another  cried — "They 
ought  to  have  their  town  knocked  about  their  ears,  and  destroyed ;" 
and  then  concluded  a  tirade  of  abuse,  by  quoting  the  factious  shout 
uttered  by  Cato :  "Delenda  est  Carthago"  —  Carthage  must  be 
destroyed. 


MT.  42.]  TYRANNICAL  MEASURES.  389 

The  manly  words  of  defence  for  the  Americans,  uttered  by  Burke 
and  others,  were  unheeded,  and  Parliament,  by  enactment  on  the 
seventh  of  March,  1774,  ordered  the  port  of  Boston  to  be  closed 
against  all  commercial  transactions  whatever,  and  the  removal  of 
the  customhouse,  courts  of  justice,  and  other  public  offices,  to  Salem. 
The  Salem  people  patriotically  refused  the  proffered  advantage  at 
the  expense  of  their  neighbors ;  and  the  inhabitants  of  Marblehead, 
fifteen  miles  distant,  offered  the  free  use  of  their  harbor  and 
wharves  to  the  merchants  of  Boston. 

Another  act  became  a  law  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  March,  which 
levelled  a  deadly  blow  at  the  charter  of  Massachusetts.  It  decreed 
that  all  counsellors,  judges,  and  magistrates,  should  be  appointed  by 
the  crown,  and  hold  office  during  the  royal  pleasure.  Thus  they 
became  paid  instruments  of  oppression. 

A  third  retaliatory  act  was  passed  on  the  twenty-first  of  April, 
providing  for  trial  in  England  of  all  persons  indicted  in  the  colonies 
for  murder,  or  other  capital  offence,  committed  in  aiding  the  magis 
tracy  ;  giving,  as  Colonel  Barre  said  on  the  floor  of  the  house  of 
commons,  "  encouragement  to  military  insolence  already  so  insup 
portable." 

A  fourth  bill,  providing  for  the  quartering  of  troops  in  America, 
was  also  passed,  by  large  majorities  in  both  houses  of  Parliament : 
and  in  anticipation  of  rebellion,  a  fifth  act  was  passed,  making  great 
concessions  to  the  Roman  catholics  in  Canada,  to  prevent  that 
province  joining  in  the  revolt.  This  was  known  as  the  Quebec  act. 

These  oppressive  measures,  condemned  alike  by  the  voice  of 
expediency  and  common  humanity,  were  speedily  put  in  operation. 
The  Boston  port-bill  was  to  take  effect  on  the  first  of  June.  Intel 
ligence  of  its  passage  had  produced  alarm  and  indignation  in  the 
doomed  town,  and  the  inhabitants  prepared  to  meet  their  sad  fate 
with  fortitude. 

The  people  of  all  the  colonies  made  common  cause  with  the  Bos- 
tonians.  The  blow  about  to  be  inflicted  upon  that  city  might  fall,  at 
any  time,  elsewhere,  and  the  liberties  of  all  were  in  jeopardy.  That 
blow  had  weakened  the  last  link  of  colonial  fidelity,  and  the  colo- 


390  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

nists  felt  prepared  to  draw  the  sword  and  cast  away  the  scabbard 
if  necessary,  for  they  would  not  be  slaves.  The  desire  for  political 
independence  began  to  kindle  in  many  hearts  and  thrilled  their 
nerves  like  an  electrical  stream,  making  the  recipients  prophetic. 
They  saw  in  the  present  little  hope  for  reconciliation,  for  the  stand 
points  of  argument  of  the  contestants  were  widely  different.  But 
they  perceived  as  clearly  as  seer  of  old,  a  glorious  future  for 
America,  if  America  should  be  true  to  herself,  looming  in  the  dis 
tance,  and  they  took  heart  at  the  apparition.  In  the  field,  the 
workshop,  the  pulpit,  the  forum,  and  the  deep  forest,  men  were 
stirred  with  emotions  hitherto  unfelt.  There  was  a  great  want 
unsatisfied.  A  parent's  hand  had  barred  the  door  against  them, 
and  their  hearts  yearned  for  the  strength  of  confederation,  that 
they  might  build  a  tabernacle  in  the  wilderness,  preparatory  to 
the  erection  of  a  nobler  edifice  dedicated  to  the  uses  of  human 
freedom. 

The  people  earnestly  listened  for  some  oracular  voice,  speaking 
with  the  authority  of  wisdom,  and  directing  their  steps.  It  had 
already  been  uttered  by  Franklin,  from  beneath  the  shadows  of  the 
throne  which  they  had  been  taught,  by  bitter  experience,  almost  to 
hate,  when,  months  before,  he  said,  in  a  letter  to  the  Massachusetts 
assembly :  "  Perhaps  it  would  be  best  and  fairest  for  the  colonies,  in 
a  general  congress  now  in  peace  to  be  assembled,  or  by  means  of 
the  correspondence  lately  proposed,  after  a  full  and  solemn  asser 
tion  and  declaration  of  their  rights,  to  engage  firmly  with  each 
other,  that  they  will  never  grant  aids  to  the  crown  in  any  general 
war,  till  those  rights  are  recognised  by  the  king  and  both  houses  of 
Parliament ;  communicating,  at  the  same  time,  to  the  crown,  this 
their  resolution.  Such  a  step,  I  imagine,  will  bring  the  dispute  to 
a  crisis."  The  accents  of  the  oracle  were  then  lost  in  the  tumults 
of  popular  agitation,  but  now  the  quicker  ears  of  the  people  caught 
the  words,  and  Virginia  was  the  first  to  give  them  practical  signifi 
cance,  by  proposing  a  CONTINENTAL  CONGRESS. 

Intelligence  of  the  Boston  port-bill  had  not  reached  Virginia 
when  a  new  house  of  burgesses,  summoned  by  Dimmore,  met  at 


JET.  42.]  SOCIAL  PLEASURES.  391 

Williamsburg  in  May.  The  governor's  family,  consisting  of  his 
lady  and  several  sons  and  daughters,  had  arrived,  and  these  received 
so  much  attention  from  the  Virginia  aristocracy,  that  the  palmy 
days  of  Lord  Botetourt's  administration  seemed  about  to  return. 
Public  grievances  were  for  a  time  forgotten  by  many  of  the  politi 
cal  leaders ;  and  Dunmore  indulged  the  hope  that  the  Virginians 
would  be  lured  from  their  rebellious  attitude  toward  the  crown. 
Quite  a  court  circle  was  formed ;  and  regulations  were  actually  pub 
lished  officially,  determining  the  rank  and  precedence  of  officers, 
civil  and  military.  The  most  distinguished  and  wealthy  inhabitants 
vied  with  each  other  in  their  attentions  to  the  family  of  the  gov 
ernor  ;  and  stately  equipages,  such  as  carriages-and-four,  with 
liveried  outriders,  were  frequently  seen  in  Williamsburg,  when 
wealthy  planters  came  with  their  families  to  mingle  in  the  gay 
scenes  of  the  capital. 

Washington,  with  only  Bishop,  his  favorite  body-servant,  arrived 
at  Williamsburg  on  the  sixteenth  of  May,  and  dined  with  the 
governor.  He  was  not  only  on  intimate  terms  with  his  lordship, 
but  he  held  a  high  position  in  the  court  circle,  according  to  the 
regulations.  Everything  passed  off  pleasantly.  At  the  table  he 
met  several  members  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  but  not  a  word 
was  uttered  calculated  to  mar  the  general  good  feeling.  And 
when,  on  the  following  day,  the  assembly  was  opened  in  due  form 
by  the  governor,  one  of  the  first  measures  of  the  house  was  an 
address  of  congratulation  to  his  lordship,  on  the  arrival  of  his  lady. 
This  was  followed  by  an  arrangement  to  honor  Lady  Dunmore 
with  a  ball  on  the  twenty-seventh  of  the  month. 

On  the  day  when  these  acts  of  a  pleasant  social  nature  occurred, 
Peyton  Randolph,  the  speaker  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  received  a 
letter  from  the  Massachusetts  committee  of  correspondence,  an 
nouncing  the  passage  of  the  bill  for  closing  the  port  of  Boston  on 
the  first  of  June  and  for  inflicting  other  injuries  upon  that  unhappy 
town.  Randolph  read  the  letter  to  the  house  when  in  full  session, 
and  at  its  close  a  general  murmur  of  indignation  spread  over  the 
assembly,  followed  by  bold  and  eloquent  denunciations  of  the 


392  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

measure.  A  strong  protest  against  that  and  the  other  retaliatory 
measures  of  Parliament,  was  entered  upon  the  journal,  and  on  the 
twenty-fourth,  the  house  adopted  a  resolution  of  condolence  with 
their  persecuted  sister  colony,  and  passed  an  order,  setting  apart 
the  first  day  of  June  as  a  day  of  fasting,  humiliation,  and  prayer 
"  to  implore  the  Divine  interposition  for  averting  the  heavy  calam 
ity  which  threatened  destruction  to  their  civil  rights,  and  the  evils 
of  civil  war,  and  to  give  them  one  heart  and  one  mind  firmly  to 
oppose,  by  all  just  and  proper  means,  every  injury  to  American 
rights."  At  noon  the  following  day,  wrhile  the  members  were  en 
gaged  in  an  animated  debate,  they  were  summoned  to  the  council 
chamber  by  Lord  Dunmore,  who  addressed  them  as  follows :  "  Mr. 
Speaker,  and  gentlemen  of  the  house  of  burgesses ;  I  have  in  my 
hand  a  paper,  published  by  order  of  your  house,  conceived  in  such 
terms  as  reflect  highly  upon  his  majesty,  and  the  Parliament  of 
Great  Britain,  which  makes  it  necessary  for  me  to  dissolve  you, 
and  you  are  dissolved  accordingly." 

The  delegates,  eighty-nine  in  number  (among  whom  was  Wash 
ington),  immediately  reassembled  in  the  Apollo  room,  at  the  Raleigh 
tavern,  organized  themselves  into  a  voluntary  convention,  and  pre 
pared  an  address  to  their  constituents,  in  which  they  declared,  "  that 
an  attack  made  on  one  of  our  sister  colonies,  to  compel  submission 
to  arbitrary  taxes,  is  an  attack  made  on  all  British  America,  and 
threatens  ruin  to  the  rights  of  all,  unless  the  united  wisdom  of  the 
whole  be  applied."  They  also  recommended  the  committee  of  cor 
respondence,  to  communicate  with  the  several  committees  of  the 
other  colonies,  on  the  expediency  of  appointing  deputies  to  meet 
annually  in  a  GENERAL  CONGRESS,  to  deliberate  on  such  measures  as 
the  united  interests  of  the  several  colonies  might  require. 

Thus  was  Franklin's  suggestion,  made  months  before,  and  the 
propositions  at  town  meetings  in  New  York  and  Boston,  moulded 
into  practical  form,  and  presented  to  the  Americans  for  acceptance 
or  rejection.  It  was  the  first  recommendation  of  a  general  con 
gress  by  any  legislative  or  deliberative  assembly ;  and  a  few  days 
afterward,  before  intelligence  of  these  proceedings  could  have 


Mr.  42.]  A  GENERAL  CONGRESS  PROPOSED.  393 

reached  them,  the  assembly  of  Massachusetts,  convened  at  Salem, 
resolved,  u  That  a  meeting  of  committees  from  the  several  colonies 
on  this  continent  is  highly  expedient  and  necessary,  to  consult 
upon  the  present  state  of  the  colonies,  and  the  miseries  to  which 
they  are  and  must  be  reduced,  by  the  operation  of  certain  acts  of 
Parliament  respecting  America ;  and  to  deliberate  and  determine 
upon  wise  and  proper  measures  to  be  by  them  recommended  to  all 
the  colonies,  for  the  recovery  and  establishment  of  their  just  rights 
and  liberties,  civil  and  religious,  and  the  restoration  of  union  and 
harmony  between  Great  Britain  and  the  colonies,  most  ardently 
desired  by  all  good  men." 

So,  almost  simultaneously,  and  without  concert,  Virginia  and 
Massachusetts  made  a  similar  proposition  to  the  people  of  America, 
of  the  greatest  importance,  and  prepared  to  act  upon  it.  The 
Massachusetts  assembly  immediately  appointed  five  delegates*  to 
attend  a  general  congress  when  it  should  assemble,  but  the  Vir 
ginians  postponed  further  action  on  the  subject,  until  a  more  con 
venient  time.  The  proposition  met  with  a  hearty  response  from 
the  other  colonies,  and  it  was  agreed  that  a  general  congress  of 
delegates  should  meet  at  Philadelphia  on  the  fifth  of  September, 


ensuing. 


The  dissolution  of  the  Virginia  assembly,  and  the  reorganization 
of  the  members  into  a  body  hostile,  in  its  position,  to  the  govern 
ment,  did  not  interrupt  the  decorous  intercourse  between  Lord 
Dunmore  and  the  burgesses.  On  that  very  day  (May  twenty-fifth), 
Washington,  according  to  his  diary,  dined  with  the  governor,  and 
spent  the  evening  with  him  and  his  family.  On  the  following  day 
he  noted  in  his  diary :  "  Rode  out  with  the  governor  to  his  farm, 
and  breakfasted  with  him  there  ;"f  and,  on  the  evening  of  the 

*  Thomas  Gushing,  Samuel  Adams,  Robert  Treat  Paine,  James  Bowdoin,  and  John  Adams. 

t  Dunmore  had  erected  a  new  "palace"  at  Williamsburg.  It  was  built  of  brick,  sevenry-four 
feet  in  length,  including  the  wings,  and  sixty-eight  feet  in  width.  The  wings  were  yet  standing,  in 
1857.  The  central  building  was  accidentally  destroyed  by  fire,  while  occupied  by  the  French  troops, 
after  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis,  in  1781.  Attached  to  the  palace  were  three  hundred  and  sixty 
acres  of  land,  beautifully  laid  out  in  cultivated  fields,  parks,  gardens,  carriage-ways,  and  a  bowling- 
green.  The  farm  proper,  and  farmhouse,  where  Washington  breakfasted  with  the  governor,  was 
about  a  mile  from  the  town. 


394  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

twenty-seventh,  he  attended  the  ball  given  in  honor  of  Lady  Dim- 
more  by  the  members  of  the  assembly,  according  to  previous 
arrangement.  On  that  occasion  there  was  no  sign  of  hostile,  or 
even  unpleasant  feelings  toward  the  governor.  Everything  passed 
off  harmoniously.  But  all  that  gallant  courtesy  was  an  evidence 
of  perfect  good  breeding  rather  than  of  real  friendly  feeling,  for  it 
was  well  known,  that  the  official  acts  of  the  governor  were  conso 
nant  with  his  private  sentiments,  and  he  was,  therefore,  an  antag 
onist  of  the  people.  Yet  Washington  and  others,  disposed  to  be 
conservative  and  conciliatory  as  far  as  loyalty  to  correct  principles 
would  allow,  hoped  that,  like  Botetourt,  the  governor's  opinions  ol 
the  colonies  and  their  cause  might  be  changed,  and  it  was  thought 
expedient  and  just  to  treat  him  privately  as  a  friend,  so  long  as  he 
should  deserve  such  consideration. 

Twenty-five  of  the  burgesses  remained  in  Williamsburg,  to  en 
gage  in  the  religious  services  which  the  assembly  had  appointed  for 
the  first  of  June.  Among  them  were  Washington,  Peyton  Randolph, 
Richard  Henry  Lee,  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  Patrick  Henr3r.  Two 
days  after  the  ball  (the  twenty-ninth),  Mr.  Randolph  received  a 
letter  from  Boston,  containing  the  proceedings  of  a  town-meeting, 
held  there  on  the  fourteenth,  which  recommended  the  inhabitants 
of  the  several  colonies  to  enter  into  a  general  and  solemn  league 
to  suspend  all  commercial  intercourse  with  Great  Britain,  until  the 
Boston  port-bill  and  other  unrighteous  enactments  of  Parliament 
should  be  repealed.  Randolph  assembled  the  delegates  the  fol 
lowing  day,  and  submitted  the  matter  to  them.  On  comparison  of 
views  respecting  the  proposed  league,  they  differed  in  one  essential 
point,  that  of  the  prohibition  of  exports.  Large  debts  were  due  to 
merchants  in  England,  which  could  only  be  liquidated  by  exporting 
produce  from  the  colonies.  To  refuse  to  do  this,  would  be,  in  effect, 
refusing  to  pay  honest  debts.  On  this  point  Washington  was  very 
earnest.  He  insisted,  that  before  exports  should  be  prohibited,  all 
just  debts  should  be  paid.  Others  reasoned  that  the  colonists,  after 
all,  would  be  the  greatest  sufferers,  and  that  the  English  merchants 
ought  not  to  be  exempt  from  the  general  calamity  brought  about 


>ET.  42.]  A  SOLEMN  FAST.  395 

by  the  government.  Finally,  as  they  could  not  agree,  and  they 
were  but  a  minority  of  all  the  delegates,  they  did  not  feel  at  liberty 
to  act  in  a  matter  so  grave,  without  the  concurrence  of  the  major 
ity,  especially  as  it  was  significantly  resolved,  at  the  meeting  in  the 
Apollo-room,  on  the  twenty-fifth,  that  "A  tender  regard  for  the 
interests  of  our  fellow-subjects,  the  merchants  and  manufacturers 
of  Great  Britain,  prevents  us  from  going  further  at  this  time ;  most 
earnestly  hoping  that  the  unconstitutional  principle  of  taxing  the 
colonies  without  their  consent  will  not  be  persisted  in,  thereby  to 
compel  us,  against  our  will,  to  avoid  all  commercial  intercourse 
with  Britain."  After  considerable  discussion,  they  agreed  to  issue 
a  circular  letter,  bearing  their  signatures,  to  the  inhabitants  of  the 
several  counties,  inviting  them  to  choose  delegates  to  meet  in  con 
vention  at  Williamsburg,  on  the  first  of  August,  to  take  into  con 
sideration  the  proposition  for  a  continental  league,  and  other  mat 
ters  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of  the  colonies.  This  circular  was 
accordingly  issued ;  and  it  contained  a  recommendation  that  the 
opinions  of  the  people  respecting  the  proposed  measure,  should  be 
obtained,  so  that  their  representatives  might  act  in  the  convention 
according  to  the  dictates  of  the  popular  will. 

At  dawn  on  the  first  of  June,  the  day  on  which  the  port  of 
Boston  was  to  be  closed,  the  bells  of  Brenton  church,  of  the  cap- 
itol,  and  of  William  and  Mary  college,  tolled  solemnly,  for  it  was 
the  appointed  day  for  fasting,  humiliation,  and  prayer.  Religious 
services  were  held  in  Brenton  church,  and  Washington  noted  in  his 
diary,  at  evening :  "  June  1st,  Wednesday.  Went  to  church  and 
fasted  all  day."  Every  true  patriot  in  Williamsburg  and  vicinity, 
who  could  attend,  was  there,  and  the  church  was  crowded.  On  the 
following  day  most  of  the  delegates  departed  for  their  homes,  but 
Washington  was  detained  by  business,  and  did  not  leave  for  Mount 
Vernon  until  the  twentieth.  During  all  the  interval,  his  friendly 
relations  with  Dunmore  and  his  family  continued,  and  they  parted 
with  mutual  expressions  of  good  will. 


39G  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 


CHAPTER   XXXVII. 

CONDITION  OF  THE  BOSTON  PEOPLE  — GAGE  APPOINTED  GOVERNOR TROOPS  OR 
DERED  TO  BOSTON — GAGE'S  RECEPTION  THERE  —  PROCEEDINGS  OF  A  TOWN- 
MEETING DISTRESS  OF  THE  PEOPLE GENERAL  SYMPATHY ACTION  OF  THE 

MASSACHUSETTS  ASSEMBLY BOSTON  NECK  FORTIFIED ARMING  OF  THE  PEO 
PLE MINUTE-MEN PUBLIC  MEETINGS  IN  VIRGINIA WASHINGTON  AND  BRYAN 

FAIRFAX THE  CELEBRATED  FAIRFAX  RESOLVES CONVENTION  OF  WILLIAMS- 
BURG —  WASHINGTON'S  SPEECH — APPOINTMENT  OF  DELEGATES  TO  THE  CONTI 
NENTAL  CONGRESS. 

SAD,  indeed,  was  the  situation  of  Boston  on  the  first  of  June, 
1774,  the  day  when  the  heel  of  government  oppression  was  pal 
pably  planted  upon  the  neck  of  a  people  yearning  to  stand  erect  in 
the  dignity  and  majesty  of  freemen.  Due  preparations  had  been 
made  to  keep  that  heel  firmly  settled  there.  General  Gage,  the 
commander-in-chief  of  all  the  British  forces  in  America,  was  ap 
pointed  to  succeed  Hutchinson  as  governor  of  Massachusetts,  in 
order  to  enforce  the  port-bill,  and  the  other  arbitrary  enactments 
of  Parliament,  and  toward  the  close  of  April  he  prepared  to  leave 
New  York  to  take  possession  of  his  new  office.  Hutchinson, 
thoroughly  alarmed  by  the  bold  movements  of  the  patriots,  and 
fearing  their  resentment,  remained  in  seclusion  in  the  country  until 
a  favorable  opportunity  for  him  to  leave  the  province  occurred. 

Doubtful  what  reception  he  might  experience  at  Boston,  Gage 
ordered  four  additional  regiments  thither,  at  the  beginning  of  May, 
and  soon  afterward,  unattended  by  any  military  except  his  staff,  he 
departed  for  the  doomed  town.  He  landed  at  Long  wharf,  on  the 
thirteenth  of  May,  and  found  the  people  very  much  excited,  for 
they  had  just  received  intelligence  of  the  passage  of  the  port-bill. 
But  he  had  acted  discreetly  while  in  New  York,  and  was  favored 
with  a  large  share  of  the  confidence  of  the  people.  He  was  re- 


for.  42.]  DISTRESS  IN  BOSTON.  397 

ceived  at  the  wharf  with  every  mark  of  respect  by  the  multitude, 
and  he  was  entertained  by  the  magistrates  at  a  public  dinner,  on 
the  same  day.  That  evening  Hutchinsori  was  hung  in  effigy ;  and, 
on  the  following  day,  Samuel  Adams  presided  over  a  large  town- 
meeting  held  at  Faneuil  hall,  to  consider  the  port-bill.  Then  it  was 
that  the  resolutions  and  other  proceedings  respecting  a  continental 
league  against  commercial  intercourse  with  {.Great  Britain  (which, 
as  we  have  mentioned,  were  received  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  May, 
by  the  patriots  at  Williamburgh)  had  birth,  Then  it  was  that  the 
patriots  of  Massachusetts  "passed  the  river  and  cut  away  the 
bridge."  Already  on  the  anniversary  of  the  "  Boston  Massacre," 
John  Hancock,  remembering  the  recommendation  of  Franklin,  had 
said  to  the  people :  "  Permit  me  here  to  suggest  a  general  congress 
of  deputies,  from  the  several  houses  of  assembly  on  the  continent, 
as  the  most  effectual  method  of  establishing  such  a  union  as  the 
present  posture  of  our  affairs  require ;"  and  now  that  idea  was  the 
most  prominent  one  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  people. 

The  whole  country  was  inflamed,  and  everywhere  the  most  lively 
sympathy  for  the  inhabitants  of  Boston  was  awakened.  Orators  at 
public  gatherings,  ministers  in  the  pulpit,  and  the  newspaper  press 
throughout  the  land  denounced  the  heavy  hand  of  ministerial  ven 
geance  laid  upon  Boston,  as  a  type  of  what  was  in  store  for  the 
whole  country.  The  cause  of  Boston  became  the  cause  of  all  the 
colonists,  and  the  active  sympathies  of  the  people  abroad  was  com 
mensurate  with  the  sufferings  of  the  patriots  of  that  town,  when 
their  harbor  was  closed,  their  business  crushed,  and  destitution  sat 
in  every  place.  The  rich,  deprived  of  their  rents,  became  strait 
ened,  and  the  poor,  denied  the  privilege  of  labor,  were  reduced  to 
beggary.  But  help  came  to  the  patriots  there  in  the  hour  of  their 
need,  from  every  colony.  The  "  Supporters  of  the  Bill  of  Rights" 
in  London,  remembering  the  contribution  of  South  Carolina  to  their 
fund,  voted  five  hundred  pounds  to  relieve  the  distress  of  the  poor 
of  Boston ;  and  the  city  of  London,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  sub 
scribed  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars  for  the  same  pur 
pose.  Never  was  the  British  ministry  weaker  in  its  government 


398  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

relations  to  Americans  than  at  this  time,  when  Lord  North  was 
forging,  as  he  vainly  supposed,  the  fetters  of  majestic  law  to  bind 
the  colonies  indissolubly  to  the  throne.  In  honorable  concession 
alone  lay  his  real  strength,  but  of  these  precious  locks  the  Delilah 
of  haughty  ambition  and  easy  persuasion  had  shorn  him,  and  when 
he  attempted  to  put  forth  his  power,  he  found  himself,  "  like  other 
men,"  weak  indeed. 

By  proclamation,  Governor  Gage  summoned  the  members  of  the 
Massachusetts  assembly  to  meet  at  Salem,  on  the  seventh  of  June. 
In  the  meanwhile,  Samuel  Adams  and  James  Warren,  who  had 
been  appointed  by  their  compatriots  to  prepare  business  for  the 
meeting,  had  conferred  with  others,  and  arranged  important  schemes 
for  the  public  good.  These  were  laid  before  the  assembly  at  its 
opening,  when  a  partisan  of  the  crown,  feigning  sickness,  withdrew, 
and  hastening  to  the  governor,  informed  him  of  what  was  trans 
piring.  Gage  immediately  sent  his  secretary  to  dissolve  the  assem 
bly  by  proclamation,  but  the  patriots  were  too  vigilant  for  him. 
The  door  of  the  assembly  chamber  was  locked,  and  the  key  was  in 
Samuel  Adams's  pocket.  They  proceeded  deliberately  and  undis 
turbed  in  the  discussion  and  adoption  of  their  measures.  They 
agreed  to  and  signed  a  solemn  "league  and  covenant,"  binding 
themselves  to  cease  all  commercial  intercourse  with  Great  Britain, 
and  appointed  a  committee  to  send  the  covenant  as  a  circular  to 
every  colony  in  America,  and  invite  the  inhabitants  to  affix  their 
names  to  it.  They  then  proceeded  to  recommend  a  general  con 
gress — "a  meeting  of  committees  from  the  several  colonies,  to 
consult  upon  the  state  of  the  country"  —  and  as  we  have  seen, 
appointed  the  committee  for  Massachusetts. 

These  proceedings  irritated  Gage,  and  he  gave  the  people  to 
understand,  that  he  should  put  into  execution  all  the  laws  of  Par 
liament  with  rigor.  He  enforced  military  rule  in  all  its  strength ; 
and  when  told  that  he  must  relax  it,  or  rebellion  would  ensue,  he 
answered  by  casting  up  fortifications  upon  Boston  Neck,  and  pro 
hibiting  free  intercourse  between  the  town  and  the  country.  No 
hope  of  reconciliation  appeared,  and  the  people,  persuaded  that  war 


jET.  42.]  PREPARATIONS  FOR  WAR.  399 

was  inevitable,  began  to  arm  themselves  and  practise  military 
tactics  daily.  The  fife  and  drum  were  heard  everywhere ;  and 
fathers  and  sons,  encouraged  by  the  gentler  sex,  took  lessons  to 
gether  in  the  art  of  war.  The  forge  and  hammer  were  busy  in 
making  guns  and  swords,  and  everything  bore  the  animated  but 
gloomy  impress  of  impending  hostilities.  During  the  summer  and 
autumn,  the  people  of  New  England  enrolled  themselves  into  mili 
tary  companies,  and  prepared  to  take  up  arms  at  a  minute's  warning. 
Such  was  the  origin  of  the  famous  "  minute-men,"  whose  blood  was 
poured  out  at  Lexington,  and  Concord,  and  Bunker  Hill. 

In  other  colonies,  especially  in  Virginia,  the  spirit  of  liberty  now 
waxed  strong,  and  the  forms  of  resistance  multiplied  daily.     Soon 
after  Washington's  return  to  Mount  Vernon,  meetings  were  held  in 
the  several  colonies,  pursuant  to  the  recommendation  of  the  circular 
issued  from  Williamsburg.     At  these  meetings  resolutions  expres 
sive  of  the  sentiments  of  the  people  were  adopted,  and  delegates 
to   the   convention  to  be    held   at  Williamsburg,  on   the   first  of 
August,  were  elected.      Washington  presided    at  the  meetings  in 
Fairfax  county,  and  was  appointed  one  of  a  committee  to  prepare 
a  series  of  resolutions  concerning  the  late  acts  of  Parliament,  the 
rights  of  the  colonies,  and  the  proper  course  to  be  pursued  by 
them,  and  to  report  the  same,  at  a  meeting  to  be  held  at  the  court 
house,  on  the  eighteenth  of  July.     In  the  meanwhile,  an  election  of 
delegates  to  the  house  of  burgesses  was  to  be  held,  and  Washington 
urged  his  friend  and  neighbor,  Bryan  Fairfax,  of  Tarlston  hall,  to 
offer  himself  as  a  candidate.*     Fairfax  had  attended  one  of  the 
popular  meetings,  when  his  loyal  feelings  were  disturbed  by  the 
bold  spirit  of  resistance  to  royal  authority  then  manifested.     He 
perceived  the  prevailing  temper  of  the  people,  and  he  declined  the 
proffered  honor,  chiefly  because  he  should  think  himself  conscien 
tiously  bound  to  oppose  strong  measures,  and,  therefore,  he  could 
not  give  satisfaction  to  his  constituents. 

*•  Bryan  Fairfax  was  a  younger  brother  of  George  William  Fairfax,  the  intimate  friend  of  Wash 
ington.  He  was  a  man  of  liberal  sentiments  and  enlighted  views,  but,  like  many  who  took  the 
royal  side  in  the  war  for  independence,  he  was  too  much  attached  to  ancient  rule  and  the  British 
government,  to  enter  upon  a  doubtful  contest  with  them.  He  afterward  became  Lord  Fairfax. 


400  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

Fairfax  was  decidedly  in  favor  of  still  longer  petitioning  Parlia 
ment,  and  giving  it  a  fair  opportunity  of  repealing  the  obnoxious 
acts.  These  sentiments  were  communicated  in  a  letter  to  Washing 
ton,  who  replied  on  the  fourth  of  July,  again  expressing  a  wish,  that 
either  he  or  Colonel  Mason  would  offer.*  "As  to  your  political 
sentiments,"  wrote  Washington,  "I  would  heartily  join  you  in  them, 
so  far  as  relates  to  a  humble  and  dutiful  petition  to  the  throne, 
provided  there  was  the  most  distant  hope  of  success.  But  have  wre 
not  tried  this  already  ?  Have  we  not  addressed  the  lords,  and 
remonstrated  to  the  commons?  And  to  what  end?  Did  they 
deign  to  look  at  one  petition  ?  Does  it  not  appear,  as  clear  as  the 
sun  in  its  meridian  brightness,  that  there  is  a  regular,  systematic 
plan  formed,  to  fix  the  right  and  practice  of  taxation  upon  us  ? 
Does  not  the  uniform  conduct  of  Parliament  for  some  years  past 
confirm  this  ?  Do  not  all  the  debates,  especially  those  just  brought 
to  us,  in  the  house  of  commons,  on  the  side  of  government,  ex 
pressly  declare  that  America  must  be  taxed  in  aid  of  the  British 
funds,  and  that  she  has  no  longer  resources  within  herself?  Is 
there  anything  to  be  expected  from  petitioning  after  this  ?  Is  not 
the  attack  upon  the  liberty  and  property  of  the  people  of  Boston, 
before  restitution  of  the  loss  to  the  East  India  Company  was  de 
manded,  a  plain  and  self-evident  proof  of  what  they  are  aiming 
at?"  These  questions  could  be  answered  only  in  the  affirmative, 
but  Fairfax  was  too  conservative  and  timid  to  espouse  the  cause  of 
the  people,  and  he  wrote  a  long  letter  to  Washington,  stating  his 
views  and  objections,  and  requesting  him  to  read  it  to  the  meeting 
to  be  held  on  the  eighteenth  of  the  month. 

That  meeting  was  a  very  important  one.  It  was  held  in  Fairfax 
county  courthouse,  and  was  organized  by  the  appointment  of 
George  Washington,  chairman,  and  Robert  Harrison,  secretary. 
Its  chief  business  was  to  receive  and  act  upon  resolutions  prepared 

*  This  letter  reveals  the  custom  in  Virginia,  at  that  time,  of  making  the  gathering  of  the  people 
on  the  sabbath,  for  public  worship,  an  occasion  for  an  interchange  of  sentiments  upon  political  sub 
jects.  Washington  speaks  of  Colonel  West  "  publicly  declining,  last  Sunday,"  to  be  a  candidate 
for  a  seat  in  the  house  of  burgesses ;  and  of  entreating  "  several  gentlemen  at  our  church  yesterday 
to  press  Colonel  Mason  to  take  a  poll." 


Mr.  42.]  FAIRFAX  COUNTY  RESOLVES.  401 

by  the  committee  appointed  at  a  previous  meeting.  Washington 
had  been  chosen  chairman  of  that  committee,  and  George  Mason 
was,  doubtless,  the  author  of  the  resolutions  then  framed.*  These 
were  twenty-four  in  number.  They  so  clearly  and  forcibly  set 
forth  the  whole  question  at  issue,  and  so  fairly  indicate  the  causes 
which  impelled  the  colonists  to  the  contest  then  opening ;  and  they 
form  such  a  lucid  exposition  of  the  matured  political  feelings  and 
opinions  of  Washington,  it  seems  desirable  that  some  of  them 
should  appear  here  entire,  and  they  are  accordingly  given,  as  they 
were  adopted  by  the  meeting.  It  was  resolved  — 

1.  "That  this  colony  and  dominion  of  Virginia  can  not  be  con 
sidered  as  a  conquered  country ;    and  if  it  was,  that  the  present 
inhabitants  are  the  descendants,  not  of  the  conquered,  but  of  the 
conquerors.     That  the  same  was  not  settled  at  the  national  expense 
of  England,  but  at  the  private  expense  of  the  adventurers,  our 
ancestors,  by  solemn  compact  with,  and    under   the  auspices  and 
protection  of   the   British   crown;    upon  which  we  are,  in  every 
respect,  as  dependent  as  the  people  of  Great  Britain,  and  in  the 
same  manner,  subject  to  all  his  majesty's  just,  legal,  and  constitu 
tional  prerogatives.     That  our  ancestors,  when  they  left  their  native 
land  and  settled  in  America,  brought  with  them  (even  if  the  same 
had  not  been  conferred  by  charters),  the  civil  institutions  and  forms 
of  government  of  the  country  they  came  from ;  and  were,  by  the 
laws  of  nature  and  of  nations,  entitled  to  all  its  privileges,  immu 
nities  and  advantages,  which  have  descended  to  us,  their  posterity, 
and  ought  of  right  to  be  as  fully  enjoyed,  as  if  we  had  still  con 
tinued  within  the  realm  of  England." 

2.  "  That  the  most  important  and  valuable  part  of  the  British 
constitution,  upon  which  its  very  existence  depends,  is  the  funda 
mental  principle  of  the  people's  being  governed    by  no  laws,  to 
which  they  have  not  given  their  consent  by  representatives  freely 
chosen  by  themselves;  who  are  effected  by  the  laws  they  enact, 
equally  with    their  constituents;    to  whom    they  are  accountable, 

*  Mr.  Sparks  says,  in  his  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.,  488,  that  the  draft  of  these  reso- 
utions  were  found  among  Washington's  papers,  in  the  handwriting  of  George  Mason. 

26 


402  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

and  whoso  burthens  they  share ;  in  which  consists  the  safety  and 
happiness  of  the  community ;  for  if  this  part  of  the  constitution 
was  taken  away,  or  materially  altered,  the  government  must  degen 
erate  either  into  an  absolute  or  despotic  monarchy,  or  a  tyrannical 
aristocracy,  and  the  freedom  of  the  people  annihilated." 

3.  "Therefore,  as  the  inhabitants  of  the  American  colonies  are 
not,  and,  from  their  situation,  can  not  be  represented  in  the  British 
Parliament,  the  legislative  power  here  can  of  right  be  exercised 
only  by  our  own  provincial  assemblies  or  parliaments,  subject  to 
the  assent  or  negative  of  the  British  crown,  to  be  declared  within 
some  proper  limited  time.  But  as  it  was  thought  just  and  reason 
able,  that  the  people  of  Great  Britain  should  reap  advantages  from 
these  colonies  adequate  to  the  protection  they  afforded  them,  the 
British  Parliament  have  claimed  and  exercised  the  power  of  regu 
lating  our  trade  and  commerce,  so  as  to  restrain  our  importing 
from  foreign  countries  such  articles  as  they  could  furnish  us  with, 
of  their  own  growth  or  manufacture,  or  exporting  to  foreign  coun 
tries  such  articles  and  portions  of  our  produce,  as  Great  Britain 
stood  in  need  of,  for  her  own  consumption  or  manufactures.  Such 
a  power,  directed  with  wisdom  and  moderation,  seems  necessary  for 
the  general  good  of  that  great  body  politic,  of  which  we  are  a 
part;  although  in  some  degree  repugnant  to  the  principles  of  the 
constitution.  Under  this  idea  our  ancestors  submitted  to  it ;  the 
experience  of  more  than  a  century,  during  the  government  of  his 
majesty's  royal  predecessors,  has  proved  its  utility,  and  the  recipro 
cal  benefits  flowing  from  it,  produced  mutual,  uninterrupted  har 
mony  and  good  will  between  the  inhabitants  of  Great  Britain  and 
her  colonies,  who,  during  that  long  period,  always  considered  them 
selves  as  one  and  the  same  people ;  and  though  such  a  power  is  ca 
pable  of  abuse,  and  in  some  instances  has  been  stretched  beyond  the 
original  design  and  institution,  yet  to  avoid  strife  and  contention 
with  our  fellow-subjects,  and  strongly  impressed  with  the  experience 
of  mutual  benefits,  we  always  cheerfully  acquiesced  in  it,  while  the 
entire  regulation  of  our  internal  policy,  and  giving  and  granting 
our  own  money,  were  preserved  to  our  own  provincial  legislatures." 


yE-r.  41>.]  FAIRFAX  COUNTY  RESOLVES.  403 

4.  "  That  it  is  the  duty  of  these  colonies,  on  all  emergencies,  to 
contribute,  in  proportion  to  their  abilities,  situation,  and  circum 
stances,  to  the  necessary  charge  of  supporting  and  defending  the 
British  empire,  of  which  they  are  a  part ;  that  while  we  are  treated 
upon  an  equal  footing  with  our  fellow-subjects,  the  motives  of  self- 
interest  and    preservation  will    be   a  sufficient  obligation,  as  was 
evident  through  the  course  of  the  last  war ;  and  that  no  argument 
can  be  fairly  applied  to  the  British  Parliament's  taxing  us,  upon  a 
presumption  that  we  should  refuse  a  just  and  reasonable  contribu 
tion,  but  will    equally  operate   in   justification   of   the   executive 
power  taxing  the  people  of  England,  upon  a  supposition  of  their 
representatives  refusing  to  grant  the  necessary  supplies." 

5.  "  That  the  claim  lately  assumed  and  exercised  by  the  British 
Parliament,  of  making  all  such  laws  as  they  think  fit  to  govern  the 
people  of  these  colonies,  and  to  extort  from  us  our  money,  without 
our  consent,  is  not  only  diametrically  contrary  to  the  first  principles 
of  the  constitution,  and  the  original  compacts  by  which  we  are 
dependent  upon  the  British  crown  and  government ;  but  is  totally 
incompatible  with  the  privileges  of  a  free  people,  and  the  natural 
rights  of  mankind,  will  render  our  own  legislators  merely  nominal 
and  nugatory,  and  is  calculated  to  reduce  us  from  a  state  of  free 
dom  and  happiness  to  slavery  and  misery." 

6.  "  That  taxation  and  representation  are  in  their  nature  insepa 
rable  ;  that  the  right  of  withholding,  or  of  giving  or  granting  their 
own  money,  is  the  only  effectual  security,  to  a  free  people,  against 
the  encroachments  of  despotism  and  tyranny ;  and  that  whenever 
they  yield  the  one,  they  must  quickly  fall  a  prey  to  the  other." 

7.  "  That  the  power  over  the  people  of  America  now  claimed  by 
the  British  house  of  commons,  in  whose  election  we  have  no  share, 
and   on  whose   determinations  we   can   have  no   influence,  whose 
information  must  be  always  defective,  and  often  false,  who,  in  many 
instances,  may  have  a  separate,  and  in  some,  an  opposite  interest  to 
ours,  and  who  removed  from  those  impressions  of  tenderness  and 
compassion  arising  from  personal  intercourse  and  connections,  which 
soften  the  rigors  of  the  most  despotic  governments,  must,  if  con- 


404  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

tinued,  establish  the  most  grievous  and  intolerable  species  of  tyr 
anny  and  oppression  that  ever  was  inflicted  upon  mankind." 

8.  "  That  it  is  our  greatest  wish  and  inclination,  as  well  as  inter 
est,  to  continue  our  connection  with,  and    dependence  upon    the 
British  government;  but  though  we  are  its  subjects,  we  will  use 
every  means  which  Heaven  hath  given  us,  to  prevent  our  becoming 
its  slaves." 

9.  "  That  there  is  a  premeditated  design  and  system  formed  and 
pursued  by  the  British  ministry,  to  introduce  an  arbitrary  govern 
ment  into  his  majesty's  American  dominions ;  to  which  end  they 
are  artfully  prejudicing  our  sovereign,  and  inflaming  the  minds  of 
our  fellow-subjects  in  Great  Britain,  by  propagating  the  most  ma 
levolent  falsehoods,  particularly,  that  there  is  an  intention  in  the 
American  colonies  to  set  up  for  independent  states ;  endeavoring,  at 
the  same  time,  by  various  acts  of  violence  and  oppression,  by  sud 
den  and   repeated  dissolutions  of  our  assemblies,  whenever  they 
presume  to  examine  the  illegality  of  ministerial  mandates,  or  delib 
erate  on  the  violated  rights  of  their  constituents,  and  by  breaking 
in  upon  the  American  charters,  to  reduce  us  to  a  state  of  despera 
tion,  and  dissolve  the  original   compacts  by  which  our   ancestors 
bound  themselves  and  their  posterity,  to  remain  dependent  upon 
the  British  crown ;  which  measures,  unless  effectually  counteracted, 
will  end  in  the  ruin  of  both  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies." 

10.  "That  the  several  acts  of  Parliament  for  raising  a  revenue 
upon  the   people  of  America  without  their  consent,  the  creating 
new  and  dangerous  jurisdictions  here,  the  taking  away  our  trials 
by  jury,  the  ordering  persons,  upon  criminal  accusation,  to  be  tried 
in  another  country  than  that  in  which  the  fact  is  charged  to  have 
been  committed,  the  act  inflicting  ministerial  vengeance  upon  the 
town  of  Boston,  and  the  two  bills  lately  brought  into  Parliament 
for  abrogating  the  charter  of  the  province  of  Massachusetts  Bay. 
and  for  the  protection  and  encouragement  of  murderers  in  the  said 
province,  are  part  of  the  above-mentioned  iniquitous  system.     That 
the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Boston  are  now  suffering  in  the 
common  cause  of  all  British  America,  and  are  justly  entitled  to  its 


Mi.  31.]  WASHINGTON'S  OPINIONS.  405 

support  and  assistance ;  and,  therefore,  that  a  subscription  ought 
immediately  to  be  opened,  and  proper  persons  appointed  in  every 
county  of  this  colony,  to  purchase  provisions,  and  consign  them  to 
some  gentleman  of  character  in  Boston,  to  be  distributed  among 
the  poorer  sort  of  people  there." 

It  was  also  resolved,  to  join  with  friends  and  brethren  in  other 
colonies,  in  all  measures  for  procuring  a  redress  of  grievances ;  that 
a  closer  union  should  be  effected  by  a  general  congress ;  that  petty 
disputes  between  separate  colonies  should  be  buried  in  eternal 
oblivion ;  that  men  of  fortune  set  examples  of  frugality  in  living ; 
that  domestic  arts  and  manufactures,  and  the  raising  of  sheep  ought 
to  be  encouraged;  that  all  commercial  intercourse  between  the 
Americans  and  Great  Britain,  and  her  West  India  colonies,  should 
be  discontinued,  while  the  grievances  complained  of  existed ;  and 
that  "  this  and  the  other  associating  colonies  should  break  off  all 
trade,  intercourse,  and  dealings,  with  that  colony,  province,  or 
town,  which  declines  or  refuses  to  agree  to  the  plan  which  shall 
be  adopted  by  the  general  congress." 

It  was  also  resolved,  that  "during  our  present  difficulties  and 
distress,  no  slaves  ought  to  be  imported  into  any  of  the  British 
colonies  on  this  continent ;"  and  it  was  added :  "  we  take  this  op 
portunity  of  declaring  our  most  earnest  wishes  to  see  an  entire 
stop  for  ever  put  to  such  a  wicked,  cruel,  and  unnatural  trade." 
An  humble  petition  to  his  majesty  was  recommended  to  the  general 
congress,  by  the  last  of  the  resolutions  drawn  up  by  the  committee, 
but  to  this  measure  Washington  was  opposed.  "  As  to  the  resolu 
tion  for  addressing  the  throne,"  he  wrote  to  Bryan  Fairfax,  "  I  own 
to  you,  sir,  I  think  the  whole  might  as  well  have  been  expunged. 
I  expect  nothing  from  the  measure,  nor  should  my  voice  have  sanc 
tioned  it,  if  the  non-importation  scheme  was  intended  to  be  retarded 
by  it ;  for  I  am  convinced,  as  much  as  I  am  of  my  own  existence, 
that  there  is  no  relief  for  us,  but  in  their  distress;  and  I  think,  at 
least  I  hope,  that  there  is  public  virtue  enough  left  among  us  to 
deny  ourselves  everything  but  the  bare  necessaries  of  life,  to 
accomplish  this  end." 


406  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

The  meeting  at  the  courthouse,  on  the  eighteenth  of  July,  was 
largely  attended  by  all  the  leading  men  of  the  county,  and  the 
resolutions  reported  by  the  committee  were  adopted  by  unanimous 
vote.  These,  in  substance  and  spirit,  were  re-adopted  by  the  con 
vention  at  Williamsburg,  a  fortnight  later,  and  excited  universal 
admiration.*  The  meeting  then  proceeded  to  appoint  Colonel 
Washington  and  Captain  Charles  Broadwater  (who  had  lately  been 
elected  representatives  to  serve  in  the  general  assembly)  the  dele 
gates  for  Fairfax  county,  to  attend  the  convention  at  Williamsburg 
on  the  first  of  August,  and  to  present  these  resolves. 

Mr.  Fairfax,  who  had  previously  read  the  resolutions,  and  dis 
sented  from  many  of  them,  was  not  present  at  the  meeting,  but,  as 
we  have  observed,  expressed  his  sentiments  in  a  letter,  which  he 
requested  Washington  to  read  to  the  people.  This  request  was  not 
complied  with.  Washington  showed  the  letter  to  some  of  the  lead 
ing  men  there,  but  only  one  acquiesced  in  the  sentiments  expressed 
by  Fairfax.  "  As  no  person  present  seem  in  the  least  disposed  to 
adopt  your  sentiments,"  he  wrote  to  Fairfax,  on  the  twentieth,  "  as 
there  appeared  a  perfect  satisfaction  and  acquiescence  in  the  meas 
ures  proposed,  and  as  the  gentlemen  to  whom  the  letter  was  shown, 
advised  me  not  to  have  it  read,  as  it  was  not  likely  to  make  a  con 
vert,  and  was  repugnant,  as  some  thought,  to  every  principle  we 
were  contending  for,  I  forbore  to  offer  it."  He  then,  in  the  same 
letter,  reasoned  with  his  friend,  referred  to  real  grievances,  and  the 
evident  folly  of  expecting  any  redress  from  Parliament,  and  said  : 
"  If  I  were  in  any  doubt  as  to  the  right  which  the  Parliament  of 
Great  Britain  had  to  tax  us  without  our  consent,  I  should  most 
heartily  coincide  with  you  in  opinion,  that  to  petition,  and  peti 
tion  only,  is  the  proper  method  to  apply  for  relief;  because  we 
should  then  be  asking  a  favor,  and  not  claiming  a  right,  which,  by 
the  laws  of  nature,  and  by  our  constitution,  we  are,  in  my  opinion, 
indubitably  entitled  to.  I  should  even  think  it  criminal  to  go 
further  than  this,  under  such  an  idea  ;  but  I  have  none  such.  I 


* 
the 


*  "  Aug.  23.     Tuesday. — Went  to  the  coffeo-house  [New  York],  and  saw  the  Virginia  paper; 
spirit  of  the  people  is  prodigious;  their  resolutions  are  really  grand." — John  Adams's  Diary. 


J£T.  42.]  WASHINGTON'S  SPEECH.  407 

think  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain  have  no  more  right  to  put 
their  hands  into  my  pocket,  without  my  consent,  than  I  have  to 
put  my  hands  into  yours ;  and  this  being  already  urged  to  them  in 
a  firm,  but  decent  manner,  by  all  the  colonies,  what  reason  is  there 
to  expect  anything  from  their  justice  ?" 

The  convention  assembled  at  Williamsburg,  according  to  appoint 
ment,  on  the  first-  of  August,  when  almost  every  county  in  the 
colony  was  represented.  Peyton  Randolph  was  chosen  moderator,  or 
chairman.  Washington  was  present  at  the  opening,  and  at  a  suitable 
time  he  presented  the  Fairfax  county  resolves,  and  supported  them 
in  a  brief  but  impressive  speech.  In  the  course  of  his  address, 
which  Mr.  Lynch,  from  South  Carolina,  pronounced  "  the  most  elo 
quent  speech  that  ever  was  made,"  Colonel  Washington  exclaimed 
with  warmth :  "  I  will  raise  one  thousand  men,  subsist  them  at  my 
own  expense,  and  march,  myself  at  their  head,  for  the  relief  of 
Boston."*  This  enthusiasm  was  shared  by  the  other  members  of 
the  convention ;  and  in  the  course  of  a  session  of  six  days,  they 
adopted  a  non-intercourse  association,  more  extensive  in  its  prohibi 
tions  than  the  former,  and  embodying,  in  its  general  features,  the 
Fairfax  county  resolves.  They  also  appointed  Peyton  Randolph, 
Richard  Henry  Lee,  George  Washington,  Patrick  Henry,  Richard 
Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  and  Edmund  Pendleton,  delegates  to  the 
general  congress,  to  be  held  at  Philadelphia  on  the  fifth  of  Septem 
ber  following.  After  agreeing  upon  instructions  for  these  delegates, 
the  convention  adjourned,  and  the  members  returned  to  their  con 
stituents,  pledged  to  do  all  in  their  power  to  effect  the  results  con 
templated  in  their  proceedings. 

*  John  Adams's  Diary,  August  31,  1774. 


40d  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  L1774. 


CHAPTER   XXXYIII. 

THE    CONTINENTAL    CONGRESS GENERAL    VIEW    OF    THE    COLONIES RECOMMEN 

DATIONS  OF  A  GENERAL  CONGRESS APPOINTMENT  OF  DELEGATES THE  MIN 
ISTRY  WARNED  AND  DECEIVED THEIR  STRANGE  INDIFFERENCE CHATHAM'S 

FOREBODINGS DETERMINATION  OF  THE  COLONISTS WASHINGTON'S  PREPARA 
TIONS HIS  SENTIMENTS EVENTS  IN  MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATES  JOURNEY 
ING  TOWARD  PHILADELPHIA ARRIVAL  THERE  OF  WASHINGTON  AND  HIS 

COLLEAGUES. 

WE  are  now  to  consider  one  of  the  most  important  events  in  the 
history  of  the  United  States,  namely,  the  proceedings  of  the  FIRST 
CONTINENTAL  CONGRESS,  in  which  Washington  was  a  conspicuous  actor. 
In  the  history  of  political  leagues  and  confederations  with  which 
the  annals  of  the  nations  abound,  this,  in  its  relations  to  the  best 
earthly  interests  of  mankind,  far  outweighs  them  all.  It  was  the 
inauguration  of  a  higher  and  holier  freedom  of  opinion  and  action 
than  the  world  had  yet  seen,  for  it  evolved  that  power  of  dignified 
popular  will  that  scatters  to  the  winds  of  heaven  every  feudal 
fetter,  and  like  a  full,  burning,  swinging  censor,  purifies  the  temple 
of  Liberty  wherein  so  many  crimes  have  been  committed  in  her 
name.  It  was  a  confederation  of  a  heterogeneous  people,  widely 
different  in  their  origin,  having  separate  individual  interests,  and 
scattered  over  a  large  territory  wonderfully  diversified  by  peculiar 
ities  of  topography,  climate,  soil,  and  productions.  Yet  it  was  a 
people  homogeneous  in  their  general  interests  and  their  aspirations 
for  the  theoretical  freedom  of  the  British  constitution,  and  the 
practical  liberty  suggested  by  the  laws  of  their  own  nature,  estab 
lished  by  the  wise  hand  of  the  Omnipotent. 

Widely  separated  as  some  of  the  colonists  were  by  geographical 
distances  and  diversity  of  interests  and  pursuits,  there  were,  never 
theless,  political,  social,  and  commercial  considerations  which  made 


VOICE  OF  THE  COLONIES.  409 

the  Anglo-Americans  really  one  people,  having  common  interests 
and  common  hopes.  Called  upon  as  free  subjects  of  Great  Britain 
to  relinquish  some  of  the  dearest  prerogatives  guarantied  to  them 
by  Magna  Charta  and  hoary  custom — prerogatives  in  which  were 
enveloped  the  most  precious  kernels  of  civil  liberty — they  arose  as 
one  family  to  resist  the  insidious  progress  of  on-coming  despotism, 
and  yearned  for  union  to  give  themselves  strength  commensurate 
to  the  task. 

The  idea  of  a  general  council,  as  we  have  already  observed,  had 
kindled  the  enthusiasm  of  the  people  in  the  spring  of  1774,  and  it 
found  voice  and  expression  almost  simultaneously  throughout  the 
land.  Rhode  Island  has  the  honor  of  first  uttering  its  sentiments 
on  the  subject  publicly ;  a  general  congress  having  been  proposed 
at  a  town-meeting  in  Providence,  on  the  seventeenth  of  May. 
Philadelphia,  where  various  interests  and  sentiments  combined  to 
produce  a  cautious  conservatism,  spoke  next.  It  was  only  four 
days  after  the  meeting  at  Providence  when  a  committee  appointed 
by  a  town-meeting  held  in  the  long  room  of  the  City  tavern,  in 
Philadelphia,  recommended  the  measure ;  and  on  the  twenty-third, 
New  York,  where,  a  year  earlier,  patriotism  "  seemed  to  have  taken 
but  shallow  root,  where  all  political  principles  were  truly  unfixed 
as  the  wind,"*  uttered  the  same  sentiment,  at  a  town-meeting  of  the 
people.  On  the  twenty-sixth  of  the  same  month,  Virginia,  the 
first  as  a  colony  speaking  by  authority  through  the  chosen  repre 
sentatives  of  the  people,  recommended,  as  we  have  seen,  the  assem 
bling  of  a  national  council ;  and,  on  the  thirty-first,  a  county  meet 
ing  in  Baltimore,  Maryland,  took  action  in  favor  of  the  measure. 
On  the  sixth  of  June,  a  town-meeting  at  Norwich,  Connecticut, 
proposed  a  general  congress ;  on  the  eleventh  a  county-meeting  at 
Newark,  New  Jersey,  did  the  same ;  on  the  seventeenth  the  Massa 
chusetts  assembly,  and  also  a  large  town-meeting  held  in  Faneuil 
hall,  Boston,  and  presided  over  by  John  Adams,  strenuously  recom 
mended  the  measure ;  and  a  county-meeting  at  New  Castle,  Dela- 

*  Letter  of  George  Clymer,  of  Philadelphia,  to  Josiah  Quincy,  of  Boston,  July  29,  1773,  pub 
lished  in  the  Memoir  of  the  Life  of  Josiuh  Qnincy,  jr.,  by  his  son,  p  144. 


410  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

ware,  approved  it  on  the  twenty-ninth.  On  the  sixth  of  July  the 
committee  of  correspondence,  at  Portsmouth,  New  Hampshire,  ex 
pressed  its  approbation  of  the  measure.  A  general  province  meet 
ing,  held  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  on  the  sixth,  seventh,  and 
eighth  of  July,  urged  the  necessity  of  such  a  council ;  and  a  district 
meeting  at  Wilmington,  North  Carolina,  held  on  the  twenty-first, 
heartily  responded  affirmatively.  Georgia,  alone,  of  the  thirteen 
colonies,  was  silent,  but  not  inactive,  during  that  season  of  prepara 
tion.  So  we  perceive,  that  within  sixty-four  days,  twelve  of  the 
colonies  spoke  out  decidedly  in  favor  of  a  continental  Congress ; 
and  before  the  close  of  summer  delegates  for  the  national  council 
were  appointed  by  them  all. 

In  Connecticut  the  delegates  were  appointed  and  instructed  on 
the  third  of  June,  by  the  committee  of  correspondence,  acting 
under  authority  conferred  by  the  house  of  representatives ;  in 
Massachusetts,  on  the  seventeenth,  by  the  house  of  representatives ; 
in  Maryland  on  the  twenty-second,  by  committees  of  the  several 
counties ;  in  New  Hampshire  on  the  twenty-first  of  July,  by  a  con 
vention  of  deputies  chosen  by  the  towns ;  in  Pennsylvania  on  the 
twenty-second,  by  the  house  of  assembly ;  in  New  Jersey  on  the 
twenty-third,  by  the  committees  of  the  counties,  and  instructed 
simply  to  "  represent"  the  colony ;  in  the  city  and  county  of  New 
York  on  the  twenty-fifth,  they  were  elected  by  a  popular  vote  taken 
in  seven  wards.  The  same  persons  were  also  appointed  to  act  for 
the  counties  of  Westchester,  Albany,  and  Dutchess,  by  the  respective 
committees  of  those  counties ;  and  another  was  appointed  to  repre 
sent  Suffolk  county.  The  Delaware  delegates,  or  those  from  the 
"  counties  of  New  Castle,  Kent,  and  Sussex,  on  the  Delaware,"  were 
elected  on  the  first  of  August,  by  a  convention  of  the  freemen, 
assembled  pursuant  to  an  invitation  contained  in  circular  letters 
issued  by  the  speaker  of  the  house  of  assembly.  The  house  of 
commons  of  South  Carolina  elected  delegates  on  the  second  of 
August.  On  the  fifth,  a  popular  convention  of  the  whole  colony 
of  Virginia  elected  the  delegates  for  the  "  Old  Dominion."  On  the 
eleventh  the  general  assembly  of  Rhode  Island  appointed  and  com- 


iEx.  42.]  THE  MINISTRY  WARNED.  411 

missioned  delegates  for  that  colony;  and  on  the  twenty-fifth, 
a  convention  in  North  Carolina  chose  representatives  for  that 
province.* 

These  general  and  decided  movements  in  all  the  colonies  dis 
turbed  the  royal  governors  and  other  dependents  of  the  crown ; 
and  the  ministry  were  duly  informed  of  every  event  having  a  rela 
tion  to  the  subject.  The  colonists,  likewise,  through  the  committees 
of  correspondence,  kept  Franklin,  Arthur  Lee,  and  other  Americans 
in  London,  as  well  as  the  friends  of  the  cause  in  Parliament,  fully 
advised  of  all  that  was  transpiring  here.  Joseph  Reed,  of  Philadel 
phia,  afterward  Washington's  adjutant-general,  wrote  friendly  but 
firm  letters  to  the  earl  of  Dartmouth,  the  colonial  secretary,  and 
warned  him  of  the  evil  tendency  of  ministerial  measures.  "  What 
I  ventured  to  predict  in  my  last  letter,"  he  wrote  to  Dartmouth,  on 
the  tenth  of  June,  "  your  lordship  will  soon  find  to  happen,  viz.,  a 
perfect  and  complete  union  between  the  colonies  to  oppose  the  Par 
liament's  claims  of  taxation,  and  relieve  the  distresses  of  the  town 
of  Boston.  The  severity  of  the  administration,  and  the  mode  of 
condemnation,  gain  them  many  advocates,  even  among  those  who 
acknowledge  their  conduct  criminal.  This  union  or  confederacy, 
which  will  probably  be  the  greatest  ever  seen  in  this  country,  will 
be  cemented  and  fixed  in  a  general  congress  of  deputies  from  every 
province,  and  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  strong  efforts  will  be  made 

*  The  following  are  the  names  of  the  delegates  : — 

New  Hampshire. — John  Sullivan,  Nathaniel  Folsom. 

Massachusetts.  —  Thomas  Gushing,  Samuel  Adams,  John  Adams,  Robert  Treat  Paine. 

Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations.  —  Stephen  Hopkins,  Samuel  Ward. 

Connecticut.  —  Eliphalet  Dyer,  Roger  Sherman,  Silas  Deane. 

New  York. — James  Duane,  John  Jay,  Isaac  Low,  John  Alsop,  William  Floyd,  Philip  Living 
ston,  Henry  Wisner. 

New  Jersey.  —  James  Kinsey,  Stephen  Crane,  William  Livingston,  Richard  Smith,  John  De  Hart. 

Pennsylvania. — Joseph  Galloway,  John  Morton,  Charles  Humphreys,  Thomas  Mifflin,  Samuel 
Rhodes,  Edward  Biddle,  George  Ross,  John  Dickenson. 

Delaware.  —  Caesar  Rodney,  Thomas  M'Kean,  George  Read. 

Maryland.  —  Robert  Goldsborough,  Samuel  Chase,  Thomas  Johnson,  Matthew  Tilghman,  Wil 
liam  Paca. 

Virginia.  —  Peyton  Randolph,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  George  Washington,  Patrick  Henry,  Richard 
Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  Edmund  Pendleton. 

North  Carolina. — William  Hooper,  Joseph  Hewes,  Richard  Caswell. 

South  Carolina.  —  Henry  Middleton,  John  Rutledge,  Thomas  Lynch,  Christopher  Gadsden, 
Edward  Rutledse. 


412  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

to  perpetuate  it  by  annual  or  triennial  meetings,  a  thing  which  is 
entirely  new.  The  business  proposed  for  the  intended  congress  is 
to  draw  up  what  upon  a  former  occasion,  or  perhaps  upon  any  other, 
wrould  be  called  a  bill  of  rights Your  lordship,  I  think,  may  con 
sider  it  as  a  fixed  truth,  that  all  the  dreadful  consequences  of  civil 
war  will  ensue  before  the  Americans  will  submit  to  the  claim  of 
taxation  by  Parliament." 

Others  in  America,  and  true  friends  of  Great  Britain,  in  London, 
wrho  were  acquainted  with  the  colonists,  solemnly  warned  the  mis 
guided  ministry  of  the  penalty  of  their  folly  and  wickedness,  but  in 
vain.  Gage,  Dunmore,  Wright,  Penn,  and  other  royal  governors, 
affected  to  make  light  of  the  popular  demonstrations;  and  these 
and  subordinate  hirelings,  and  other  friends  of  the  crown,  were  con 
tinually  counteracting  the  effects  of  really  friendly  messages,  by 
deceptive  boasts  of  the  strength  of  Britain's  arm,  and  the  weakness 
and  cowardice  of  the  Americans.  "I  understand,"  wrote  Stephen 
Sayre,  sheriff  of  London,  to  Lord  Chatham,  "  that  the  soldiery  in 
America  do  all  they  can  to  provoke  the  inhabitants  to  outrage  and 
violence.  The  officers  write  to  their  friends  in  England,  that  the 
Americans  are  cowards  to  a  man ;  that  by  a  little  spirit  on  the  pres 
ent  occasion,  all  disputes  may  be  silenced  by  the  sword,"  etc.  In 
reply,  Chatham  exclaimed,  on  the  fifteenth  of  August :  "  What  in 
fatuation  and  cruelty  to  accelerate  the  sad  moment  of  war !  Every 
step  on  the  side  of  government,  in  America,  seems  calculated  to 
drive  the  Americans  into  open  resistance,  vainly  hoping  to  crush 
the  spirit  of  liberty,  in  that  vast  continent,  at  one  successful  blow ; 
but  millions  must  perish  there  before  the  seeds  of  freedom  will 
cease  to  grow  and  spread  in  so  favorable  a  soil ;  and,  in  the  mean 
time,  devoted  England  must  sink  herself  under  the  ruins  of  her  own 
foolish  and  inhuman  system  of  destruction."*  Thirteen  days  later, 
Chatham  again  wrote :  "  When,  then,  will  infatuated  administration 
begin  to  fear  that  freedom  they  can  not  destroy,  and  which  they  do 
not  know  how  to  love  ?  Delay  is  fatal,  where  repentance  will  come 
too  late.  I  fear  the  bond  of  union  between  us  and  America  will  be 
cut  for  ever."-j- 

*  Correspondence  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham,  iv.,  359.  t  Ibid.,  iv.,  360. 


^Ex.  41>.]  THE  WEAPON  PREPARED.  413 

At  that  moment  the  hand  was  bared  to  wield  the  weapon  that 
should  accomplish  the  severance !  At  that  moment,  the  delegates 
of  twelve  colonies  had  been  appointed  to  attend  the  Continental 
Congress  that  was  to  meet  in  Philadelphia,  eight  days  later,  to  forge 
that  keen  and  unyielding  weapon.  The  great  Chatham,  who 

"  Loved  his  country,  loved  that  spot  of  earth 
Which  gave  a  Milton,  Hampden,  Bradshaw  birth"  — 

and  was,  until  the  last,  opposed  to  American  independence,  because 
he  wished  to  see  the  British  realm  preserved  in  its  integrity,  clearly 
foresaw  in  the  horoscope  of  his  country's  destiny  the  impending 
storm.  He  shuddered  as  he  perceived  the  half-blind  ministry  sport 
ing  with  the  lightning  and  laughing  at  the  thunder,  while  with 
mock-heroic  frowns  they  bade  their  servants  to  hush  the  tempest 
by  imbecile  proclamations  and  insane  menaces.  The  people  of  the 
colonies  had  learned  the  true  value  of  ministerial  dicta,  and  the 
weakness  of  their  minions  who  echoed  their  mandates ;  and,  with 
the  manly  dignity  of  creatures  conscious  of  the  impress  of  God's 
image  upon  their  brows,  they  walked  erect  and  defiant,  like  the 
holy  children  of  old,  in  the  fiery  furnace  into  which  they  had  been 
cast,  for  they  knew  that  a  redeemer  would  walk  with  them.  So  from 
twelve  colonies  the  chosen  representatives  of  the  people,  full  of  wis 
dom,  full  of  zeal,  and  full  of  love  for  God  and  man,  went  up  to 
Philadelphia  —  the  city  of  brotherly  love  —  and  there,  with  solemn 
ceremonials,  planted  the  seeds  of  our  mighty  Banyan-Tree  of  the 
West,  whose  deep-rooted  branches  are  rapidly  overspreading  the 
continent.  Let  us  see  how  the  great  husbandry  was  accomplished. 
Now  fairly  embarked  upon  the  broader  sea  of  public  life,  and 
fully  committed  to  the  cause  of  his  country,  Washington,  with  his 
usual  assiduity,  commenced  preparations  for  usefulness  in  the  grand 
council  to  which  he  had  been  elected.  Before  he  left  Williamsburg, 
in  August,  he  wrote  to  Richard  Henry  Lee,  and  asked  him  if  he  did 
not  think  it  necessary  that  the  deputies  from  Virginia  should  be 
furnished  with  authentic  lists  of  the  exports  and  imports  of  the 
colony  annually,  more  especially  to  and  from  Great  Britain.  Assu 
ming  that  Lee  would  agree  with  him  in  opinion,  he  requested  him 


414  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

to  obtain  such  information  from  the  customhouse-officers  on  the 
Potomac  and  Rappahannock  rivers.  He  also  desired  the  speaker 
of  the  Virginia  assembly,  if  he  should  think  it  expedient,  to  furnish 
him  with  similar  information  concerning  operations  on  the  York 
and  James  rivers.  He  likewise  procured,  from  Mr.  Wythe,  the  num 
ber  of  taxable  inhabitants  in  the  colony  at  the  time  of  the  census  in 
1770  ;*  and  from  others  he  obtained  such  information  as  he  deemed 
necessary,  that  he  might  truly  represent  his  constituents  in  the 
general  Congress. 

Soon  after  his  return  to  Mount  Yernon,  Washington  received  a 
letter  from  his  friend,  Bryan  Fairfax,  in  which  he  was  requested  to 
give  his  views  at  length  on  the  subject  of  the  current  disputes,  and 
to  explain  to  him  wherein  his  letter  sent  to  the  Fairfax  county  con 
vention  on  the  eighteenth  of  July,  with  a  request  that  it  should  be 
read,  was  repugnant  to  the  principles  they  were  contending  for. 
"  I  beg  leave,"  Fairfax  said,  "  to  look  upon  you  as  a  friend,  and  it  is 
a  great  relief  to  unbosom  one's  thoughts  to  a  friend.  Besides,  the 
information,  and  the  correction  of  my  errors,"  he  continued,  "  which 
I  may  obtain  from  a  correspondence,  are  great  inducements  to  it. 
For  I  am  convinced  that  no  man  in  the  colony  wishes  its  prosperity 
more,  would  go  greater  lengths  to  secure  it,  or  is  at  the  same  time 
a  better  subject  to  the  crown.  Pray,  excuse  these  compliments; 
they  may  be  tolerable  from  a  friend." 

Preparations  for  his  journey  to  Philadelphia,  attention  to  private 
affairs,  and  the  entertainment  of  company,  prevented  Washington 
from  replying  to  his  friend  for  several  days;  and  then,  pleading 
these  excuses,  he  gave  him  but  a  brief  answer.  "  I  am  sure,"  he 
said,  "I  have  no  new  light  to  throw  upon  the  subject,  nor  any  other 
arguments  to  offer  in  support  of  my  own  doctrine,  than  what  you 
have  seen ;  and  I  could  only  in  general  add,  that  an  innate  spirit  of 
freedom  first  told  me,  that  the  measures,  which  the  administration 
have  for  some  time  been,  and  now  are  most  violently  pursuing,  are 
opposed  to  every  principle  of  natural  justice ;  whilst  much  abler 

*  It  was  estimated  by  Mr.  Wythe  that  the  number  of  taxable  inhabitants  in  Virginia,  in  1774, 
was  full  ten  thousand. 


jE-r.  42.]  WASHINGTON  TO  FAIRFAX.  415 

heads  than  my  own  have ,  fully  convinced  me,  that  they  are  not 
only  repugnant  to  natural  right,  but  subversive  of  the  laws  and  con 
stitution  of  Great  Britain  itself,  in  the  establishment  of  which  some 
of  the  best  blood  in  the  kingdom  has  been  spilt. 

"  Satisfied,  then,  that  the  acts  of  the  British  Parliament  are  no 
longer  governed  by  the  principles  of  justice ;  that  they  are  tram 
pling  upon  the  valuable  rights  of  Americans,  confirmed  to  them  by 
charter  and  by  the  constitution  they  themselves  boast  of;  and  con 
vinced,  beyond  the  smallest  doubt,  that  these  measures  are  the 
result  of  deliberation,  and  attempted  to  be  carried  into  execution 
by  the  hand  of  power,  is  it  a  time  to  trifle,  or  risk  our  cause  upon 
petitions,  which  with  difficulty  obtain  access,  and  afterward  are 

thrown  by  with  the  utmost  contempt? I  could  wish,  I  own,  that 

the  dispute  had  been  left  for  posterity  to  determine,  but  the  crisis 
is  arrived  when  we  must  assert  our  rights,  or  submit  to  every  impo 
sition  that  can  be  heaped  upon  us,  till  custom  and  use  shall  make 

us  tame  and  abject  slaves If  you  disavow  the  right  of  Parliament 

to  tax  us,  unrepresented  as  we  are,  we  only  differ  in  respect  to  the 
mode  of  opposition,  and  this  difference  principally  arises  from  your 
belief  that  they  (the  Parliament,  I  mean)  want  a  decent  opportu 
nity  to  repeal  the  acts ;  whilst  I  am  fully  convinced  that  there  has 
been  a  regular,  systematic  plan  formed  to  enforce  them,  and  that 
nothing  but  unanimity  and  firmness  in  the  colonies,  wrhich  they  did 
not  expect,  can  prevent  it.  By  the  best  advices  from  Boston,  it 
seems  that  General  Gage  is  exceedingly  disconcerted  at  the  quiet 
and  steady  conduct  of  the  people  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  at 
the  measures  pursuing  by  the  other  governments.  I  dare  say  he 
expected  to  force  those  oppressed  people  into  compliance,  or  irri 
tate  them  into  acts  of  violence  before  this,  for  a  more  colorable  pre 
tence  of  ruling  that  and  the  other  colonies  with  a  high  hand."* 

It  was  even  so.  "  Whatever  violences  are  committed,"  wrote 
Dartmouth  to  Gage,  "  must  be  resisted  with  firmness ;  the  constitu 
tional  authority  of  this  kingdom  over  its  colonies  must  be  vindicated, 
and  its  laws  obeyed  throughout  the  whole  empire.  It  is  not  only 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.;  396. 


416  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

its  dignity  and  reputation,  but  its  power,  nay,  its  very  existence, 
depends  upon  the  present  moment ;  for,  should  these  ideas  of  inde 
pendence  which  some  dangerous  and  ill-designing  persons  here  are 
artfully  endeavoring  to  instil  into  the  minds  of  the  king's  American 
subjects,  once  take  root,  that  relation  between  this  kingdom  and  its 
colonies,  which  is  the  bond  of  peace  and  power,  will  soon  cease  to 
exist,  and  destruction  must  follow  disunion." 

Acting  upon  these  instructions  and  suggestions,  and  governed  also 
by  his  fears,  Gage  removed  the  seat  of  government  from  Salem  back 
to  Boston,  and  commenced  fortifying  the  Neck.  But  the  work  went 
on  slowly.  British  gold  could  not  purchase  Boston  carpenters,  and 
Gage  was  finally  compelled  to  import  less  scrupulous  men,  with 
building-materials,  from  other  places.  With  his  six  regiments  of 
troops  and  a  train  of  artillery,  he  exercised  military  rule  with  great 
stringency ;  and,  by  proclamation  after  proclamation,  he  sought  to 
awe  the  people  of  Massachusetts,  and  compel  obedience  to  an  act 
of  Parliament  which  prohibited  all  political  assemblages  after  the 
first  of  August.  But  his  efforts  were  fruitless.  The  people  con 
voked  assemblies  before  that  day,  and  kept  them  perpetually  alive 
by  adjournments,  and  so  they  accomplished  their  desires  without 
violating  the  law.  In  Boston,  Faneuil  hall  was  crowded  when  these 
adjourned  meetings  were  held;  and  in  the  more  spacious  South 
meeting-house,  and  under  the  shadows  of  Liberty-Tree,*  the  people 
fearlessly  assembled  and  expressed  their  sentiments,  unmoved  by 
the  glitter  of  scarlet  uniforms  and  menacing  bayonets  that  appeared 
on  every  side.  "  Throughout  the  colony,"  says  Lord  Mahon,  "  the 
sheriffs,  magistrates,  and  clerks,  either  made  their  peace  with  the 
people  by  solemnly  promising  not  to  act  under  the  new  law,  or  else 
fled  for  shelter  to  the  well-guarded  town  of  Boston."  As  a  signifi- 

*  Liberty-Tree,  in  Boston,  was  a  venerable  elm,  similar  to  some  now  seen  on  the  Common,  and 
stood  on  the  corner  of  the  present  Washington  and  Essex  streets,  opposite  the  Boylston  market. 
It  received  the  name  of  Liberty-Tree  from  the  circumstance  that  under  it  the  association  of  the  Sons 
of  Liberty  held  meetings  during  the  summer  of  1765,  and  adopted  measures  in  opposition  to  the 
stamp-act.  After  that,  meetings  were  frequently  held  there,  until  they  were  prohibited  by  the  Brit 
ish  authorities  in  1775.  In  August  of  that  year,  the  obnoxious  tree  was  cut  down  by  order  of  the 
British  commander,  when  a  soldier,  who  was  in  its  branches,  was  killed  at  its  fall.  The  tree  bore 
the  inscription,  "Liberty-Tree,"  and  the  ground  under  it  was  called  "Liberty  Hall." 


Ji 


he  acids  that  B« 


"•••'•i'-.  tHtJ  uoM^Jitts  commenced   their  )onn;evs  tou;;i'<; 
pliKi,  >om«  on  horseback.. others  in  cow-hos  or  rhnKe.-     »ul    i  .  n 
pui»]i<-  conveyances,  for  there  wer*  i'c'.v  ->j    rh- 
populous  pn.>vino*-«.     -Some  travt  iied  u!o!ic,  (  \\\ 

they  approached  the  Delaware  or  tlie  Schuyiisill  th«iy  iouur!  \ 

t^elverf  in  cojnpanies.     These  journeys  \Vi''-e  like  ovation.-* 

j        '    «/ 

\shere  the  inhaJjitants  came  out  in  hun<K  generally  '-.n  l^oj-sel 
TO  iiieefand  escort  them  into  towns,  or  to  Lrreer.  fli^ir  M  tii*  Ir  ( 
lin«rs  \vith  the  wide-open  arms  and  heart  <;i   hospitftlity?  as  jn 
d<  serviiig  of  highe>t    honor.     What    a  glorious   spectacle: 
tw»-iv?  strong  vice-royalties,  containing  an   aiirtrregatv-  pojuilafu 
.'iim.;>t  three  millions,  the  best  and  widest,  iiwr.  amon^  tlu- 
•  •hr<!i"nt  fo.tllO  .public*  will,  wrn-  on  theii 
and  :JV-;F  rugged  mountains,  ucvo: 

?!iro!  illy-cultivated  distjicts,  {liro'.iL'ii 


wo;  1(1  : .    It  wife -a  moral 
vorded  by  the  pen  of  hist 
of  despots  .and  the  hopes 
t.i  u,;;">e  aga'!  ;  aiH 

the  rescue  o'  *1y  sh 

the.  hands  of  vnin: 

Washington  aet  out  u 
Pliilad.elphia  on  Thursda 
company  with  Pd trick  H< 
a  da\  and  a  night  with  li 
Lee  to  join  those.,  geatleir 

*  M'lliuii's  History  <;f'  1" 


^f 


.lie  o 


JEx.  42]  DELEGATES  ON  THEIR  JOURNEY.  417 

cant  commentary  upon  the  state  of  the  colony,  he  adds  that  Boston 
where  the  whigs,  as  the  patriots  were  now  called,  so  openly  defied 
the  government,  "  appeared  the  sole  remaining  spot  within  the  prov 
ince  where  the  king's  government  was  obeyed,  or  where  its  officers 
and  adherents  were  secnre."f 

As  the  time  approached  when  the  general  Congress  was  to  as 
semble,  the  delegates  commenced  their  journeys  toward  Philadel 
phia,  some  on  horseback,  others  in  coaches  or  chaises,  but  none  by 
public  conveyances,  for  there  were  few  of  them  even  in  the  most 
populous  provinces.  Some  travelled  alone,  others  in  pairs,  and  as 
they  approached  the  Delaware  or  the  Schuylkill,  they  found  them 
selves  in  companies.  These  journeys  were  like  ovations.  Every 
where  the  inhabitants  came  out  in  bands,  generally  on  horseback, 
to  meet  and  escort  them  into  towns,  or  to  greet  them  at  their  dwel 
lings  with  the  wide-open  arms  and  heart  of  hospitality,  as  guests 
deserving  of  highest  honor.  What  a  glorious  spectacle !  From 
twelve  strong  vice-royalties,  containing  an  aggregate  population  of 
almost  three  millions,  the  best  and  wisest  men  among  the  people, 
obedient  to  the  public  will,  were  on  their  way,  through  vast  forests 
and  over  rugged  mountains,  across  broad  rivers  and  broader  moras 
ses,  through  richly-cultivated  districts,  through  cheerful  villages  and 
expanding  cities,  to  a  common  goal,  there  to  meet,  deliberate,  and 
confederate,  for  the  welfare,  not  only  of  a  continent,  but  of  the 
world !  It  was  a  moral  spectacle  such  as  had  been  hitherto  unre 
corded  by  the  pen  of  history,  and  well  calculated  to  excite  the  fears 
of  despots  and  the  hopes  of  the  oppressed ;  for  their  mission  was  a 
crusade  against  civil  and  political  wrongs  and  hoary  errors,  and  for 
the  rescue  of  the  holy  shrines  of  free  thought  and  free  action  from 
the  hands  of  the  paynims  of  dynastic  power. 

Washington  set  out  upon  the  journey  from  Mount  Vernon  to 
Philadelphia  on  Thursday  morning,  the  thirty-first  of  August,  in 
company  with  Patrick  Henry  and  Edmund  Pendleton,  who  had  spent 
a  day  and  a  night  with  him  there.  He  had  invited  Richard  Henry 
Lee  to  join  those  gentlemen  at  Mount  Vernon,  but  he  was  detained 

*  Mahon's  History  of  England,  vi.,  17. 

27 


418  AVASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

at  Chantilly,  his  seat  in  Westmoreland  county,  and  did  not  reach 
Philadelphia  as  soon  as  his  colleagues.  Mr.  Lee  was  there  in  time, 
however,  to  take  his  seat  in  the  Congress  before  the  deliberations 
commenced.  Washington  was  then  in  the  prime  of  younger  man 
hood,  with  many  associations  of  military  renown  clustering  about 
his  name.  He  was  fully  matured,  accustomed  to  deliberative  assem 
blies,  conservative  in  his  feelings,  sagacious  and  bold.  Pendleton 
was  several  years  his  senior,  a  lawyer  of  fine  reputation,  experienced 
in  council,  and,  habituated  almost  from  the  days  of  his  youth  to 
public  life,  was  ready,  with  sage  advice  and  wise  illustrations,  to 
teach  the  less  experienced  how  to  manage  the  affairs  of  state.  Pat 
rick  Henry  was  a  young  man  of  eight-and-thirty,  spare  in  figure, 
with  piercing  eyes,  but  indolent  in  manner.  The  glory  of  almost 
ten  years  of  oratory  and  statesmanship  then  encircled  his  brow; 
and  he  was  filled  with  that  latent  enthusiasm  and  burning  patriot 
ism  which  needed  only  the  electric  spark  of  occasion  to  make  it 
flash  in  power  and  splendor,  with  matchless  influence. 

Such  were  the  three  travellers  who  left  Mount  Vernon,  on  horse 
back,  after  an  early  breakfast  on  that  sultry  summer  morning,  crossed 
the  Potomac  at  the  falls,  and  rode  on  far  toward  Baltimore  before 
twilight.  On  the  fourth  of  September  they  breakfasted  at  Christi 
ana  Ferry  (now  Wilmington);  dined  at  Chester;  and  that  night 
Washington  "lodged  at  Doctor  Shippen's,  in  Philadelphia,  after 
supping  at  the  New  Tavern."* 

#  Washington's  Diary. 


JET.  42.]  ORGANIZATION  OF  CONGRESS.  421 

of  South  Carolina,  who  was  a  member  of  the  stamp-act  congress, 
in  1765  —  a  man  "solid,  firm,,  and  judicious"*  —  arose  and  said: 
"  There  is  a  gentleman  present  who  has  presided  with  great  dig 
nity  over  a  very  respectable  society,  greatly  to  the  advantage  of 
America,  and  I  therefore  propose  that  the  Honorable  Peyton  Ran 
dolph,  Esquire,  one  of  the  delegates  from  Virginia,  and  the  late 
speaker  of  their  house  of  burgesses,  shall  be  appointed  chairman. 
I  doubt  not  the  choice  will  be  made  by  unanimous  vote."  And  so 
it  was ;  and  Mr.  Randolph,  a  large,  good-looking  man,  forty-five 
years  of  age,  took  the  chair  and  opened  the  preliminary  proceedings 
with  great  dignity,  after  a  few  words  of  thanks  to  his  compeers  for 
their  compliment  in  choosing  him  to  preside  over  that  important 
assembly. 

Mr.  Lynch  again  arose,  and  proposed  that  Mr.  Charles  Thomson, 
a  gentleman  of  family,  fortune,  and  character,  in  Philadelphia  (and 
who  was  then  present  on  the  invitation  of  some  delegates  to  take 
minutes  of  their  proceedings),  should  be  chosen  the  permanent 
secretary.  Mr.  Thomson,  "  the  Sam  Adams  of  Philadelphia,"-)-  was 
a  spare  man,  with  hollow,  sparkling  eyes,  locks  quite  gray,  and 
bearing  marks  of  premature  old  age.  He  was  then  in  the  prime  of 
life,  and  had  just  married  a  sister  of  Benjamin  Harrison,  one  of  the 
delegates  from  Virginia.  Duane  and  Jay,  of  New  York,  proposed 
to  look  further  for  a  secretary,  but  Thomson  was  chosen  by  the 
voice  of  all  the  rest  of  the  delegates,  and  he  at  once  entered  upon 
the  duties  of  that  important  office,  which  he  discharged  with  singu 
lar  ability  and  fidelity  for  almost  fifteen  years.  J  The  gentlemen 

*  John  Adams's  Diary.  t  Ibid. 

J  Charles  Thomson  was  born  in  Ireland,  in  the  year  1730,  and  came  to  America,  with  his  three 
elder  brothers,  in  1741.  They  landed  at  New  Castle,  Delaware,  with  no  other  dependence  but  their 
industry.  He  was  educated  by  Dr.  Alison,  the  tutor  of  several  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  at  the  expense  of  his  brothers,  and  became  a  teacher  at  the  Friends'  academy,  at 
New  Castle.  From  there  he  went  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  was  favored  with  the  friendship  and 
advice  of  Doctor  Franklin.  From  1774  until  1789,  when  the  new  government,  under  the  federal 
constitution,  went  into  operation,  Mr.  Thomson  was  sole  secretary  of  Congress.  His  wife  was 
aunt  of  the  late  General  Harrison,  the  ninth  president  of  the  United  States.  "  His  meagre  figure, 
furrowed  countenance,  hollow,  sparkling  eyes,  white,  straight  hair,  that  did  not  hang  quite  so  low 
as  his  ears,"  said  the  Abbe  Robin,  a  member  of  Rochambeau's  staff',  "fixed  our  thorough  attention, 
and  filled  us  with  surprise  and  admiration."  Notwithstanding  his  apparent  premature  decay,  Mr. 
Thomson  lived  until  the  sixteenth  of  August,  1824,  when  he  died  not  far  from  Philadelphia,  at  the 
age  of  ninety-four  years. 


422  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

from  the  several  colonies  now  presented  their  respective  credentials, 
which  were  read  and  approved ;  and  before  noon  the  immortal  CON 
TINENTAL  CONGRESS  was  organized  and  solemnly  inaugurated  as  a 
national  deliberative  assembly. 

"  For  a  long  time/'  says  the  eloquent  Charles  Botta,  "  no  spectacle 
had  been  offered  to  the  attention  of  mankind  of  so  powerful  an 
interest  as  this  of  the  present  American  Congress.  It  was,  indeed, 
a  novel  thing,  and,  as  it  were,  miraculous,  that  a  nation  hitherto 
almost  unknown  to  the  people  of  Europe,  or  only  known  by  the 
commerce  it  occasionally  exercised  in  their  ports,  should,  all  at 
once,  step  forth  from  this  state  of  oblivion,  and,  rousing  as  if  from 
a  long  slumber,  should  seize  the  reins  to  govern  itself;  that  the 
various  parts  of  this  nation,  hitherto  disjointed,  and  almost  in 
opposition  to  each  other,  should  now  be  united  in  one  body,  and 
moved  by  a  single  will ;  that  their  long  and  habitual  obedience 
should  be  suddenly  changed  for  the  intrepid  councils  of  resistance, 
and  of  open  defiance  to  the  formidable  nation  whence  they  derived 
their  origin  and  laws."*  The  men  who  composed  that  first  Con 
gress  were  possessed  of  the  purest  minds,  the  loftiest  and  most 
disinterested  patriotism,  and  moral  characters  without  spot  or 
blemish.  The  people  seemed  instinctively  to  have  turned  to  their 
best  men  for  counsel  and  action  when  the  crisis  arrived ;  and  the 
representatives  there  assembled,  composed  the  flower  of  the  Ameri 
can  colonies.  "  There  is,  in  this  Congress,"  wrote  John  Adams,  "  a 
collection  of  the  greatest  men  upon  this  continent,  in  point  of 

Mr.  Thomson  made  copious  notes  of  the  progress  of  the  Revolution,  and  after  retiring  from  public 
life,  in  1789,  he  prepared  a  history  of  his  own  times.  His  sense  of  justice  and  goodness  of  heart 
would  not  permit  him  to  publish  it ;  and  a  short  time  before  his  death,  he  destroyed  the  manuscript. 
He  gave  as  a  reason,  his  unwillingness  to  blast  the  reputation  of  families  rising  into  repute,  whose 
progenitors  were  unworthy  of  the  friendship  of  good  men,  because  of  their  bad  conduct  during  the 
war.  So  the  world  has  lost  the  most  authentic  civil  history  of  the  struggle  of  the  Americans  for 
independence,  ever  produced. 

Watson,  in  his  Annals  of  Philadelphia,  relates  that  Thomson  had  just  come  into  that  city,  with 
his  bride,  and  was  alighting  from  his  chaise,  when  a  messenger  from  the  delegates  in  Carpenters' 
hall  came  to  him,  and  said  they  wanted  him  to  come  and  take  minutes  of  their  proceedings,  as  he 
was  an  expert  at  such  business.  For  his  first  year's  services  he  would  not  receive  pay.  So  Con 
gress  informed  his  wife  that  they  wished  to  compensate  her  for  the  absence  of  her  husband  during 
that  time,  and  wished  her  to  name  what  kind  of  a  piece  of  plate  she  would  like  to  receive.  She 
chose  an  urn,  and  that  silver  vessel  is  yet  in  the  family. 

*  Otis's  translation  of  Botta's  History  of  the  American  Revolution,  i.,  128. 


J&T.  42.]  PATRICK  HENRY  IN  CONGRESS.  423 

abilities,  virtues,  and  fortunes."*  The  sectional  factions  and  per 
sonal  ambitions  which  afterward  disturbed  the  harmony  and  injured 
the  character  of  the  continental  Congress,  had  no  tangible  shape  in 
this  assembly.f  They  felt,  with  all  the  solemnity  of  wise  and 
virtuous  men,  the  weight  of  the  momentous  responsibility  resting 
upon  them.  They  knew  that  toward  them  all  eyes  were  turned, 
all  hearts  were  drawn ;  that  not  only  America,  but  the  whole  civil 
ized  world,  was  an  interested  spectator  of  their  acts ;  and  that  for 
posterity,  more  than  for  contemporaries,  they  held  a  trust  of  value 
infinitely  beyond  human  estimation.  Impressed  with  the  conscious 
ness  of  such  responsibility  the  delegates  commenced  their  labors. 

The  credentials  of  the  several  delegates  having  been  read,  Mr. 
Duane,J  of  New  York,  moved  the  appointment  of  a  committee  to 
prepare  regulations  for  the  Congress,  when  the  question  arose, 
"  What  shall  be  the  method  of  voting  ?  by  colonies,  by  the  poll,  or 
by  interests  ?"  Then  came  a  pause.  Who  should  take  the  lead  ? 
What  measure  should  be  first  proposed  ?  They  had  come  together 
from  distant  provinces,  some  instructed  by  the  power  that  appointed 
them,  others  left  free  to  act  as  circumstances  should  require.  The 
silence  was  profound.  What  burning  thoughts  filled  the  brains  of 
those  grave  patriots  during  that  silence,  which  no  one  seemed 
willing  to  break !  It  was  becoming  painful,  when  a  grave-looking 
member,  in  a  plain,  dark  suit  of  "  minister's  gray,"  and  unpowdered 
hair,  arose.  "  Then,"  said  Bishop  White,  who  was  present,  and 
related  the  circumstance,  "  I  felt  a  regret  that  a  seeming  country 
parson  should  have  so  far  mistaken  his  talents  and  the  theatre  for 
their  display."  But  his  voice  was  so  musical,  his  words  so  eloquent, 
and  his  sentiments  so  profoundly  logical,  that  the  whole  house  was 
electrified,  and  the  question,  "  Who  is  it  ?  who  is  it  ?"  went  from  lip 

*  Letters  to  his  Wife,  i.,  21. 

t  In  the  opinion  of  Charles  Thomson,  no  subsequent  Congress  during  the  war  could  compare 
with  the  first  in  point  of  talent  and  purity.  He  represented  the  Congress  that  sat  at  York,  in  Penn 
sylvania,  while  Washington  and  his  troops  were  at  Valley  Forge,  as  a  body  of  weak  men  compared 
to  former  delegations.  It  was  in  that  Congress  that  a  faction  favored  the  scheme  for  making  Gen 
eral  Gates  commander-in-chief  of  the  army,  in  place  of  Washington. 

J  "Mr.  Duane  has  a  sly,  surveying  eye,  a  little  squint-eyed;  between  forty  and  forty-five,  I 
should  guess  ;  very  sensible,  I  think,  and  very  artful."  —  John  Adams's  Diary. 


424  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

to  lip.  A  few  who  knew  the  stranger,  answered,  "It  is  Patrick 
Henry,  of  Virginia !"  There  was  no  more  hesitation.  He  who 
startled  the  people  of  America  nine  years  before,  by  his  bold  reso 
lutions  against  the  stamp-act,  and  a  few  months  afterward  by  the 
cry  that  became  a  war-note — "Give  me  liberty  or  give  me  death!" 
now  gave  the  impulse  to  the  representatives  of  that  people  in 
grand  council  assembled,  and  set  in  motion  that  machinery  of  civil 
power  wrhich  worked  so  nobly  while  Washington  and  his  com 
patriots  were  waging  war  with  the  enemy  in  the  field.  From  that 
hour  the  great  business  of  the  Congress  moved  on. 

At  first  Mr.  Henry,  as  usual,  faltered,  yet  his  wrords  were  deeply 
impressive,  and  very  soon  his  subject  kindled  his  eloquence.  He 
first  spoke  on  the  subject  of  a  committee  to  decide  upon  the  man 
ner  of  voting.  This  he  said,  was  the  first  general  Congress  ever 
known  on  this  continent;  that  of  1765  was  a  partial  one.  They 
had  no  precedents,  and  must  establish  them.  He  considered  this 
only  one  of  a  series ;  there  would  be  occasion  for  more  general 
congresses,  and  he  thought  precedents  should  be  at  once  estab 
lished.  He  then  spoke  in  more  general  terms  of  the  great  occasion 
on  which  they  were  assembled,  and  his  eyes  flashed  more  and  more 
with  enthusiasm  as  he  proceeded.  "  Government,"  he  said,  "  is  dis 
solved.  Fleets  and  armies,  and  the  present  state  of  things  in  all 
the  colonies,  the  meeting  in  this  hall,  all  proclaim  that  government 
is  dissolved.  We  are  in  a  state  of  nature,  sir,  ready  for  reconstruc 
tion  and  reorganization.  That  part  of  North  America  which  was 
once  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  that  part  which  w^as  once  Virginia, 
ought,  I  apprehend,  to  be  considered  as  having  weight  in  the  scale 
against  less  populous  colonies ;  but  all  America  is  thrown  into  one 
mass,  having  a  common  interest  and  a  common  destiny.  Where 
are  your  landmarks — your  boundaries  of  colonies?  They  are  all 
thrown  down.  The  distinction  between  Virginians,  Pennsylvanians, 
New  Yorkers,  and  New-Englanders,  are  no  more.  I  am  not  a  Vir- 
yinian,  hit  an  American  /" 

This  speech  had  a  powerful  effect  upon  the  assembly,  and  when 
Mr.  Henry  sat  down,  the  house  was  filled  with  murmurs  of  astonish- 


JET.  42.]  RULES  FOR  PROCEEDINGS.  425' 

ment  and  applause."*  In  the  course  of  his  exordium,  he  had  pro 
posed  to  give  each  colony  a  number  of  votes  according  to  its  popu 
lation.  To  this  proposition,  Mr.  Lynch,  who  arose  when  Henry 
was  seated,  offered  an  amendment.  "  I  think,"  he  said,  "  that  prop 
erty  ought  to  be  considered,  and  that  it  ought  to  be  a  compound  of 
numbers  and  property  that  should  determine  the  weight  of  the 
colonies."  It  was  objected,  that  at  present  there  was  not  sufficient 
authentic  information  on  which  to  base  such  representation.  The 
debate  continued  for  some  time,  and  was  engaged  in  by  Rutledge 
and  Gadsden,  of  South  Carolina,  Governor  Ward,  of  Rhode  Island, 
Colonel  Bland  and  Pendleton,  of  Virginia,  John  Adams,  of  Massa 
chusetts,  and  Mr.  Jay,  of  New  York.  Mr.  Duane's  motion  for  a 
committee  to  prepare  regulations  did  not  prevail,  and  the  next  day 
the  following  rules,  in  the  form  of  resolutions,  were  adopted  :— 

"  That  in  determining  questions  in  this  Congress  each  colony  or 
province  shall  have  one  vote — the  Congress  not  being  possessed  of, 
or  at  present  able  to  procure  proper  materials  for  ascertaining  the 
importance  of  each  colony.  2.  That  no  person  shall  speak  more 
than  twice  on  the  same  point,  without  leave  of  Congress.  3.  That 
no  question  shall  be  determined  the  day  on  which  it  is  agitated  and 
debated,  if  any  one  of  the  colonies  desire  the  determination  to  be 
postponed  to  another  day.  4.  That  the  door  be  kept  shut  during 
the  time  of  business,  and  that  the  members  consider  themselves 
under  the  strongest  obligation  of  honor,  to  keep  the  proceedings 
secret  until  the  majority  shall  direct  them  to  be  made  public." 

The  Congress  also  resolved,  at  the  same  time,  that  a  committee 
should  be  appointed  "  to  state  the  rights  of  the  colonies  in  general, 
the  several  instances  in  which  those  rights  are  violated  or  infringed, 
and  the  means  most  proper  to  be  pursued  for  obtaining  a  restora 
tion  of  them."  Also,  that  "  a  committee  be  appointed  to  examine 
and  report  the  several  statutes,  which  affect  the  trade  and  manu- 

*  Mr.  Wirt,  in  his  Life  of  Patrick  Henry,  says,  that  he  was  followed  by  Richard  Henry  Lee,  of 
Virginia,  "who  charmed  the  house  with  a  different  kind  of  eloquence.  Chaste,  classical,  beautiful, 
his  polished  periods  rolled  along  without  effort,  filling  the  ear  with  the  most  bewitching  harmony, 
and  delighting  the  mind  with  the  most  exquisite  imagery."  According  to  the  journals  of  Congress, 
Mr.  Lee  was  not  present  on  that  day.  He  took  his  seat  on  Tuesday,  the  sixth,  and  could  not  have 
followed  Henry  on  that  occasion. 


426  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

factures  of  the  colonies."  The  appointment  of  these  committees 
was  deferred  until  the  next  day.  At  this  stage  of  the  proceedings, 
Mr.  Cashing  renewed  a  motion  which  he  had  previously  made,  that 
Congress  should  be  opened  with  prayer.  Mr.  Jay  and  Mr.  Rutledge 
opposed  the  motion,  because  the  delegates  were  so  divided  in  reli 
gious  sentiments ;  some  episcopalians,  some  quakers,  some  anabap 
tists,  some  presbyterians,  and  some  congregationalists,  that  they 
could  not  join  in  the  same  act  of  worship.  Mr.  Samuel  Adams 
arose,  and  said :  "  I  am  no  bigot,  and  can  hear  a  prayer  from  a 
gentleman  of  piety  and  virtue,  who  is,  at  the  same  time,  a  friend  to 
his  country.  I  am  a  stranger  in  Philadelphia,  but  have  heard  that 
Mr.  Duche  deserves  that  character,  and,  therefore,  I  move  that  Mr. 
Duche,  an  episcopal  clergyman,  be  desired  to  read  prayers  to  the 
Congress  to-morrow  morning."  The  motion  was  seconded  and 
passed  in  the  affirmative.* 

When  Congress  adjourned  at  four  o'clock,  the  people  of  Philadel 
phia  were  greatly  excited  by  a  confused  account  that  had  arrived 
during  the  day,  of  the  bombardment  of  Boston.  This  intelligence 
wras  particularly  alarming  to  the  delegates  from  Massachusetts. 
Mr.  Adams  had  removed  his  family  to  Quincy  before  his  departure, 
and  on  hearing  the  news,  lie  wrote  to  his  wife,  that  if  there  was 
danger  and  distress  in  Boston,  to  invite  as  many  of  their  friends  as 
possible,  and  especially  Mrs.  Samuel  Adams  and  Mrs.  dishing,  to 
take  an  asylum  with  her.  The  startling  rumor  had  birth  in  the  fact, 
that  on  the  first  of  September,  General  Gage,  foolishly  taking 
counsel  of  his  fears,  had  sent  a  detachment  of  troops  to  Charles- 
town  and  Cambridge,  to  seize  a  quantity  of  gunpowder  there, 
belonging  to  the  province.  The  exasperated  people  of  Cambridge 
gathered  in  large  numbers,  determined  to  attack  the  British  troops 
in  Boston.  These  movements  were  magnified  into  more  serious 
events,  and  the  rumor  went  abroad,  that  the  ships-of-war  in  Boston 
harbor  were  bombarding  the  town,  and  the  regular  troops  were 
massacring  the  people,  sparing  neither  age  nor  sex.  The  news 
spread  rapidly,  and  the  thrill  of  horror  produced  by  the  report  was 

*  John  Adams's  Letters  to  his  Wife,  i.,  23. 


7Ex.  42.]  SUFFOLK  COUNTY  RESOLVES.  427 

succeeded  by  the  cry  of  vengeance.  In  less  than  thirty-six  hours, 
the  country,  for  almost  two  hundred  miles  in  extent,  was  aroused. 
From  the  shores  of  Long  Island  to  the  green  hills  of -Berkshire, 
"  To  arms !  to  arms  !"  was  the  universal  shout.  Instantly,  on  every 
side,  men  of  all  ages  wrere  seen  cleaning  and  burnishing  their 
weapons,  furnishing  themselves  with  provisions  and  warlike  stores, 
and  preparing  for  an  immediate  march ;  gentlemen  of  rank  and  for 
tune  exhorting  and  encouraging  others  by  voice  and  example.  All 
over  New  England  the  minute-men  were  in  arms.  The  roads  were 
soon  crowded  with  armed  men,  marching  for  Boston  with  great 
rapidity,  but  without  noise  or  tumult.  Full  thirty  thousand  men 
were  under  arms  and  speeding  toward  that  town;  nor  did  they 
halt  until  well  assured  that  the  report  was  untrue.  If,  as  was 
supposed  by  some,  the  report  was  circulated  in  order  that  its 
effects  might  show  General  Gage  what  multitudes  would  rise  to 
crush  his  troops  if  he  dared  to  abuse  his  power  by  committing  the 
least  act  of  violence,  it  certainly  had  the  desired  effect,  for  Gage 
adopted  more  conciliatory  measures,  and  summoned  the  assembly 
to  convene  in  October. 

That  seizure  of  po\vder  roused  the  patriots  to  still  bolder  and 
more  decisive  action.  At  a  convention  of  delegates  from  the 
several  towns  in  Suffolk  county  (the  shire  in 'which  Boston  was 
situated),  held  on  Tuesday,  the  sixth  of  September,  at  the  house  of 
Mr.  Richard  Woodward,  of  Dedham,  and  by  adjournment,  at  the 
house  of  Mr.  Vose,  of  Milton,  on  Friday,  the  ninth,  a  preamble  and 
resolutions,  more  defiant  in  tone  than  any  yet  adopted,  were  agreed 
to,  and  a  certified  copy  was  sent  to  the  continental  Congress.  After 
declaring  the  rights  of  the  colonists  and  the  wrongs  they  had  suf 
fered,  and  expressing  an  opinion  of  the  solemn  duty  of  the  op 
pressed  at  this  crisis,  it  was  resolved,  that  no  obedience  was  due  to 
any  part  of  the  late  acts  of  Parliament ;  that  collectors  of  taxes 
and  other  officers  holding  public  money,  should  be  advised  to  retain 
the  funds  in  their  hands  until  the  old  charter  was  restored ;  that 
persons  who  had  accepted  seats  in  the  mandamus  council,*  had 

*  A  writ  of  mandamus  is  a  command  from  a  higher  power,  to  any  person,  corporation,  or  in 


428  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

violated  the  duty  they  owed  to  their  country ;  that  those  who  did 
not  resign  by  the  twentieth  of  September,  should  be  considered 
public  enemies;  that  the  Quebec  act,  establishing  the  Eoman 
catholic  religion  in  Canada,  was  dangerous  to  protestantism  and 
liberty ;  and  that  they  were  determined  to  act  on  the  defensive 
only  so  long  as  just  reason  required.  They  also  recommended  the 
people  to  seize  and  keep  as  a  hostage  any  servant  of  the  crown 
who  might  fall  in  their  way,  when  they  should  hear  of  a  patriot 
being  arrested  for  any  political  offence.  They  also  drew  up  an 
address  to  General  Gage,  telling  him  frankly  that  they  did  not 
desire  to  commence  hostilities,  but  that  they  were  determined  not 
to  submit  to  any  of  the  late  acts  of  Parliament;  and  they  com 
plained  loudly  of  the  fortifications  on  Boston  Neck.  Gage  de 
nounced  this  convention  as  treasonable,  and  in  reply  to  their 
address,  he  declared  that  he  should  take  such  measures  for  the 
safety  of  his  troops,  and  the  friends  of  government,  as  he  thought 
proper;  at  the  same  time  assuring  them,  that  the  cannon  placed  in 
battery  on  the  Neck  should  not  be  used,  except  to  repel  hostile 
proceedings. 

While  this  convention  was  in  progress,  in  which  open  rebellion 
was  first  avowed  and  menaces  of  war  were  distinctly  presented,  the 
continental  Congress  exhibited  scenes  of  great  interest.  Mr.  Duche 
accepted  the  invitation  of  Congress  to  open  the  session  on  the 
morning  of  the  seventh  with  prayer,  and  at  the  appointed  hour, 
"  he  appeared  with  his  clerk,  and  in  his  pontificals."*  The  prelim 
inaries  of  the  Congress  had  been  arranged,  and  as  they  were  about 
to  enter  upon  the  general  business,  the  delegates  publicly  sought 
divine  aid.  They  assembled  in  Carpenters'  hall  that  morning,  at 
ten  o'clock,  under  solemn  impressions,  for  they  believed  the  rumor 
of  the  attack  on  Boston ;  and  when,  after  reading  several  prayers, 

ferior  court,  requiring  them  to  do  some  specified  act,  which  appertains  to  their  official  duty.  By 
the  charter  of  Massachusetts,  the  council  had  always  been  elective,  but  by  one  of  the  bills  passed  by 
Parliament  in  the  spring  of  1774,  that  charter  was  declared  void,  and  the  kino-  appointed  a  council 
by  mandamus.  They  were,  of  course,  chosen  from  among  the  loyalists,  and  many  of  them  accepted 
the  office,  and  took  the  prescribed  oath.  These  councillors  became  very  detestable  to  the  whigs, 
who  regarded  their  act  as  equivalent  to  joining  the  crown  in  its  oppressions. 
*  John  Adams's  Letter  to  his  Wife,  September  8,  1774. 


jET.  42.]  FIRST  PRAYERS  IN  CONGRESS.  420 

Mr.  Duche  turned  to  the  appointed  psalm  for  the  seventh  day  of 
the  month,  its  appropriateness  on  that  occasion  was  very  marked, 
and  the  effect  of  the  reading  of  it  was  powerful.  It  was  the  thirty- 
fifth  psalm,  in  which  David  thus  prays  for  protection  against  his 
enemies : — 

"  Plead  thou  my  cause,  0  Lord,  against  them  that  strive  with  me, 
and  fight  thou  against  them  that  fight  against  me. 

"  Lay  hand  upon  the  shield  and  buckler,  and  stand  up  to  help 
me. 

"  Bring  forth  the  spear,  and  stop  the  way  against  them  that  per 
secute  me  :  say  unto  my  soul,  I  am  thy  salvation." 

"  Awake  and  stand  up  to  judge  my  quarrel :  avenge  thou  my 
cause,  my  God  and  my  Lord. 

"  Judge  me,  0  Lord,  according  to  thy  righteousness,  and  let  them 
not  triumph  over  me. 

"  Let  them  not  say  in  their  hearts,  There,  there,  so  would  we  have 
it ;  neither  let  them  say  we  have  devoured  them,"  et  cetera. 

All  hearts  present  warmly  responded  Amen  to  the  supplications 
of  that  psalm.  "  I  never  saw  a  greater  effect  upon  an  audience," 
said  John  Adams,  in  a  letter  to  his  wife.  "  It  seemed  as  if  Heaven 
had  ordained  that  psalm  to  be  read  on  that  morning.  After  this, 
Mr.  Duche  unexpectedly  struck  out  into  an  extempore  prayer, 
which  filled  the  bosom  of  every  man  present.  Episcopalian  as  he 
is,  Dr.  Cooper  himself  never  prayed  with  such  fervor,  such  ardor, 
such  earnestness  and  pathos,  and  in  language  so  eloquent  and 
sublime,  for  America,  for  the  Congress,  for  the  province  of  Massa 
chusetts  Bay,  and  especially  for  the  town  of  Boston.  It  has  had 
an  excellent  effect  upon  everybody  here."  Bishop  White,  who  was 
present,  says,  that  Washington  was  the  only  delegate  present  who 
knelt  during  these  prayers,  that  being  the  custom  of  episcopalians, 
other  denominations  standing  on  such  occasions. 

The  only  business  transacted  by  the  Congress,  on  the  seventh, 
was  the  appointment  of  two  committees,  one  to  state  the  rights  of 
the  colonies,  &c.,  and  the  other  to  examine  and  report  upon  certain 


430  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  L1774. 

statutes,  £c.,  which  had  been  authorized  by  resolution  the  previous 
day.  It  was  agreed  that  the  first  committee  should  consist  of  two 
delegates  from  each  of  the  colonies,  and  the  second  of  one  from 
each  colony.*  It  was  then  resolved,  that  the  president  should  have 
power  to  adjourn  the  Congress,  from  day  to  day,  when  he  should 
not  find  business  prepared  to  be  laid  before  them ;  and  that  he  also 
might  call  them  together  before  the  time  to  which  they  might  stand 
adjourned,  if  necessary.  Accordingly  the  Congress  was  adjourned 
from  time  to  time,  until  Wednesday,  the  fourteenth. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  two  committees  had  pursued  their  labors 
with  assiduity.  The  first,  or  larger  committee  appointed  to  prepare 
a  bill  of  rights,  and  a  list  of  infringements  or  violations  of  those 
rights,  met  every  morning,  and  the  topics  were  considered  and 
debated  with  great  deliberation.  The  two  points  which  most 
engaged  their  attention,  were,  1.  Whether  they  should  recur  to  the 
law  of  nature,  as  well  as  to  the  British  constitution,  and  the  Ameri 
can  charters,  and  grants ;  and,  2.  What  authority  they  should  con 
cede  to  Parliament.  The  first  question  involved  others  of  a  very 
grave  nature.  Mr.  Galloway,  Mr.  Duane,  Mr.  Eutledge,  and  Mr. 
Pendleton,  were  for  excluding  the  law  of  nature.  "  I  never  could 
find  the  rights  of  Americans,"  said  Mr.  Galloway,  "  in  the  distinction 
between  taxation  and  legislation,  nor  in  the  distinction  between 
laws  for  revenue  and  for  the  regulation  of  trade.  I  have  looked 
for  our  rights  in  the  law  of  nature,  but  could  not  find  them  in  a 
state  of  nature,  but  always  in  a  state  of  political  society.  I  have 
looked  for  them  in  the  constitution  of  the  English  government,  and 
there  found  them.  We  may  draw  them  from  this  source  securely." 
Others  contended  that  the  Congress  had  been  called  to  secure  the 
rights  of  the  colonies,  and  that  the  people  who  appointed  the  dele 
gates,  had,  in  their  resolves  and  declarations,  limited  their  action  to 

*  The  first  committee  was  composed  of  the  following  delegates  :  New  Hampshire,  Sullivan  and 
Folsom  ;  Massachusetts,  John  and  Samuel  Adams  ;  Rhode  Island,  Hopkins  and  Ward ;  Connecticut, 
Dyer  and  Sherman  ;  New  York,  Duane  and  Jay ;  New  Jersey,  Livingston  aud  De  Hart ;  Pennsyl 
vania,  Galloway  and  Biddle ;  Delaware,  Rodney  and  M'Kean ;  Maryland,  Johnson  and  Golds- 
borough  ;  Virginia,  Lee  and  Pendleton  :  South  Carolina,  Lynch  and  John  Kutledge. 

The  second  committee  was  composed  as  follows,  taking  the  colonies  in  the  same  order  as  above : 
Sullivan.  Gushing,  Hopkins,  Deane,  Low,  Kinscy,  Mitflin,  Read,  Chase,  Henry,  and  Gadsden. 


JE-r.  42.]  COMMITTEE  ON  RIGHTS.  431 

the  restoration  of  harmony  between  Great  Britain  and  these  colo 
nies.  If  the  law  of  nature  was  to  determine  their  rights,  then  all 
allegiance  to  the  British  crown  was  to  be  regarded  as  at  an  end. 

Mr.  Adams,  Mr.  Jay,  Mr.  Livingston,  Mr.  Sherman  and  others, 
were  favorable  to  an  appeal  to  the  elder  law — the  law  of  nature  — 
for  their  rights.  If  the  principles  of  the  English  constitution  in 
the  charters,  they  argued,  were  to  be  the  standard  for  determining 
these  rights,  the  law  of  nature,  to  which  Parliament  might  soon 
compel  them  to  look,  must  be  excluded  from  consideration.  This 
they  were  unwilling  to  do.  As  they  proceeded  in  their  discussions, 
it  was  perceived,  that  the  question  of  the  authority  of  Parliament 
was  the  essence  of  the  whole  controversy,  some  denying  it  alto 
gether,  others  acknowledging  it  concerning  the  regulation  of  trade, 
but  denying  its  right  to  interfere  with  the  internal  affairs  of  the 
colonies. 

After  several  fruitless  essays  to  arrive  at  some  conclusion,  the 
general  committee  determined  to  appoint  a  sub-committee  to  make 
a  draft  of  a  set  of  articles  that  might  be  laid,  in  writing,  before  the 
grand  committee,  and  become  the  foundation  of  a  more  regular 
debate  and  final  decision. 

This  sub-committee  was  in  session  on  the  tenth,  twrelfth,  and 
thirteenth  of  September,  while  the  full  committee  and  the  Congress 
did  nothing,  awaiting  its  action.  "After  a  multitude  of  motions 
had  been  made,"  says  Mr.  Adams,  "  and  they  had  been  discussed 
and  negatived,  it  seemed  as  if  we  should  never  agree  upon  any 
thing."  The  alternatives  were,  either  to  establish  an  American 
legislature,  that  could  control  and  regulate  the  trade  of  the  whole 
country,  or  else  to  give  the  power  to  Parliament;  for,  from  the 
local  circumstances  of  the  colonies,  and  their  disconnection  with 
each  other,  the  absolute  necessity  for  some  such  regulation  was 
plain.  The  committee  finally  agreed  to  recommend  submission  to 
Parliament  in  measures  regulating  the  external  trade  of  the  colo 
nies  for  the  common  benefit  of  the  whole  empire,  but  denying  its 
power  over  taxation  and  internal  affairs.  They  placed  this  conces 
sion  upon  the  ground  of  the  necessities  of  the  case,  and  the  mutual 


432  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

interests  of  both  countries.*  Other  questions  having  been  settled 
to  the  satisfaction  of  the  sub-committee,  they  reported  to  the  gen 
eral  committee  on  the  thirteenth.  But  it  was  not  until  Thursday, 
the  twenty-second,  nine  days  afterward,  that  the  grand  committee 
was  ready  to  report. 

The  Congress  assembled  on  the  fourteenth,  when  very  little  was 
done,  and  it  was  adjourned  from  day  to  day,  until  Saturday,  the 
seventeenth.  Its  action  on  that  clay  was  really  more  important,  in 
its  bearings  upon  the  great  question  at  issue,  than  on  any  other 
during  the  session.  On  that  day,  the  resolves  of  the  Suffolk  county 
convention,  and  the  address  of  that  body  to  General  Gage  having 
been  received,  were  laid  before  the  Congress,  and  action  thereon 
occupied  the  time  until  the  early  hour  of  adjournment.  The  pro 
ceedings  of  that  convention  were  read  by  Secretary  Thomson,  and 
the  sentiments  contained  in  the  resolutions  found  a  hearty  response 
in  every  heart.  It  was  on  this  occasion  that  the  eloquence  of 
Richard  Henry  Lee  was  first  heard  in  the  Congress.  When  the 
reading  was  concluded  by  the  secretary,  he  arose,  and  with  his 
sweet  musical  voice,  he  vividly  and  indignantly  described  and 
enumerated  the  wrongs  of  America ;  and  exhibiting  a  vast  variety 
of  political  and  legal  knowledge,  he  accurately  stated  her  constitu 
tional  rights.  All  ears  were  charmed  by  his  words ;  and  when,  at 
the  conclusion  of  his  brief  address,  he  offered  the  following  resolu 
tions,  they  were  adopted  without  discussion,  and  almost  without 
remark,  except  hearty  words  of  approbation : — 

"Resolved  unanimously,  That  this  assembly  deeply  feels  the  suffering 
of  their  countrymen  in  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  under  the  operation  of 
the  late  unjust,  cruel,  and  oppressive  acts  of  the  British  Parliament 

*  "  Mr.  John  Rutledge,  of  South  Carolina,  one  of  the  committee,  addressing  himself  to  me, 
was  pleased  to  say :  '  Adams,  we  must  agree  upon  something ;  you  appear  to  be  as  familiar  with 
the  subject  as  any  of  us,  and  I  like  your  expressions  —  the  necessity  of  the  case,  and  excluding  all  ideas 
of  taxation,  external  and  internal ;  I  have  a  great  opinion  of  that  same  idea  of  the  necessity  of  the 
case,  and  I  am  determined  against  all  taxation  for  revenue.  Come,  take  the  pen,  and  see  if  you 
can't  produce  something  that  will  unite  us.'  Some  others  of  the  committee  seconding  Mr.  Kutledge, 
I  took  a  sheet  of  paper  and  drew  up  an  article.  When  it  was  read,  I  believe  not  one  of  the  com 
mittee  was  fully  satisfied  with  it ;  but  they  all  soon  acknowledged  that  there  was  no  hope  of  hitting 
on  anything  in  which  we  could  all  agree  with  more  satisfaction.  All,  therefore,  agreed  to  this,  and 
upon  this  depended  the  union  of  the  colonies."  —  John  Adams's  Autobiography. 


jE-r.  42.]  FIRST  LINK  OF  CONFEDERATION.  433 

—  that  they  most  thoroughly  approve  the  wisdom  and  fortitude 
with  which  opposition  to  these  wicked  ministerial  measures  has 
hitherto  been  conducted,  and  they  earnestly  recommend  to  their 
brethren  a  perseverance  in  the  same  firm  and  temperate  conduct  as 
expressed  in  the  resolutions  determined  upon,  at  a  meeting  of  the 
delegates  for  the  county  of  Suffolk  on  Tuesday,  the  sixth  instant, 
trusting  that  the  effects  of  the  united  efforts  of  North  America  in 
their  behalf,  will  carry  such  conviction  to  the  British  nation,  of  the 
unwise,  unjust,  and  ruinous  policy  of  the  present  administration,  as 
quickly  to  introduce  better  men  and  wiser  measures. 

"  Resolved  unanimously,  That  contributions  from  all  the  colonies  for 
supplying  the  necessities  and  alleviating  the  distresses  of  our 
countrymen  at  Boston  ought  to  be  continued,  in  such  manner,  and 
so  long,  as  their  occasions  may  require."* 

By  these  resolutions  the  disputes  between  Massachusetts  and 
Great  Britain  were  adopted  by  all  the  other  colonies  as  their  own ; 
and  the  wrongs  sustained  by  one  province  became  the  wrongs  of 
the  whole.  This  was  really  the  first  public  measure  of  Congress. 
Then,  for  the  first  time,  the  nation  spoke  out,  in  full  voice  and  defi 
ant  tones;  and  these  resolutions  —  the  first  sound  of  the  tocsin  for 
independence  —  were  sent  forth  by  order  of  the  Congress,  upon  the 
wings  of  the  newspaper  press  in  all  the  colonies,  as  the  deliberate 
expression  of  the  sentiments  of  the  people  of  the  continent.  "  They 
were  passed,"  wrote  John  Adams  to  his  wife  the  next  day,  "  in  full 
Congress,  with  perfect  unanimity.  The  esteem,  the  affection,  the 
admiration  for  the  people  of  Boston  and  the  Massachusetts,  which 
were  expressed  yesterday,  and  the  fixed  determination  that  they 
should  be  supported,  were  enough  to  melt  a  heart  of  stone.  I  saw 
the  tears  gush  into  the  eyes  of  the  old,  grave,  pacific  Quakers  of 
Pennsylvania."  And  on  the  day  of  their  adoption,  he  wrote  in  his 
diary :  "  This  was  one  of  the  happiest  days  of  my  life.  In  Congress 
we  had  generous,  noble  sentiments,  and  manly  eloquence.  This 
day  convinced  me  that  America  will  support  the  Massachusetts,  or 
perish  with  her." 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  19. 

28 


434  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 


CHAPTER   XL. 

SLOW  PROGRESS  OF  CONGRESS LIMITATION  OF  ACTION  CONCERNING  GRIEVANCES 

INFLUENCE      OF     VIRGINIA NON-IMPORTATION     RESOLUTION GALLOWAY'S 

PROPOSITION THE    DEBATES    AND     RESULT SAMUEL     ADAMS'S     SENTIMENTS  — 

DIFFERENCES    OF    OPINION  IN    CONGRESS LETTER  FROM    BOSTON THE    NOBLE 

RESOLUTION DECLARATION  OF  RIGHTS THE  AMERICAN  ASSOCIATION STATE 

PAPERS DISSOLUTION  OF  CONGRESS. 

FOR  several  days  after  taking  action  upon  the  Suffolk  county 
resolves,  the  Congress  made  slow  progress  in  the  despatch  of  busi 
ness.  There  was  a  short  session  on  the  nineteenth,  when  Thomas 
Gushing,  Patrick  Henry,  and  Thomas  Mifflin,  were  added  to  the 
large  committee  appointed  to  state  the  rights  of  the  colonists. 
The  Congress  was  then  adjourned  from  day  to  day,  until  Thursday, 
the  twenty-second.  After  a  resolution  requesting  the  merchants  to 
cease  importing  from  Great  Britain,  until  the  sense  of  the  Congress 
on  the  means  to  be  taken  for  the  preservation  of  the  liberties  of 
America  should  be  made  public,  was  adopted  on  that  day,  and 
ordered  to  be  published  in  hand-bills,  the  grand  committee  made  a 
report,  the  consideration  of  which  was  postponed  until  Saturday, 
the  twenty-fourth.  On  that  day  the  subject  was  debated  with 
much  earnestness  and  warmth,  by  nearly  all  the  members  who 
were  in  the  habit  of  speaking ;  and  near  the  hour  of  adjournment* 
it  was  "Resolved,  That  the  Congress  do  confine  themselves,  at  pres 
ent,  to  the  consideration  of  such  rights  only  as  have  been  infringed 
by  acts  of  the  British  Parliament  since  the  year  1763,  postponing 

*  The  sessions  were  usually  six  hours  in  duration.  "  We  go  to  Congress  at  nine,  and  there  we 
stay,  most  earnestly  engaged  in  debates  upon  the  most  abstruse  mysteries  of  state,  until  three  in  ihe 
afternoon  ;  then  we  adjourn,  and  go  to  dine  with  some  of  the  nobles  of  Pennsylvania,  at  four  o'clock, 
and  feast  upon  ten  thousand  delicacies,  and  sit  drinking  Madeira,  claret,  and  Burgundy,  till  six  or 
seven,  and  then  go  home,  fatigued  to  death  with  business,  company,  and  care." — John  Adams  to 
his  wife,  September  29,  1774. 


^ET.  42.]  NON-IMPORTATION  SCHEME.  435 

the  further  consideration  of  the  general  state  of  American  rights  to 
a  future  day."*  This  limitation  evinced  some  hesitation  in  the 
Congress,  in  taking  into  consideration  the  general  rights  of  the 
Americans,  founded  upon  the  laws  of  nature,  and  the  English  con 
stitution.  It  was  evident  that  there  was  a  disposition,  among  the 
more  timid  and  conservative  members,  to  avoid  discussions  of 
abstract  principles,  on  which  there  might  be  a  difference  of  opinion, 
and  to  confine  action  to  the  more  practical  subject  of  the  measures 
of  the  ministry  during  the  current  reign.  This  view,  according  to 
the  report  of  the  South  Carolina  delegates,  was  sustained  by  Vir 
ginia  ;  and  the  influence  of  the  delegates  from  that  colony  caused 
the  adoption  of  the  above  resolution. 

As  soon  as  this  point  of  limitation  was  settled,  the  remainder  of 
the  report,  stating  the  violations  and  infringements  of  American 
rights,  was  presented  and  read,  when  Congress  resolved,  that  the 
consideration  of  it  should  be  postponed  till  Monday,  and  that,  in 
the  meanwhile,  they  should  deliberate  on  the  means  most  proper  to 
be  pursued  for  a  restoration  of  those  rights. 

Soon  after  the  assembling  of  Congress  on  Monday,  the  twenty- 
sixth,  Kichard  Henry  Lee  offered  a  resolution  —  "That  from  and 
after  the  first  day  of  December  next,  there  be  no  importation  into 
British  America  from  Great  Britain  or  Ireland,  of  any  goods,  wares, 
or  merchandises  whatever,  or  from  any  other  place,  of  any  such 
goods,  wares,  or  merchandises,  as  shall  have  been  exported  from 
Great  Britain  or  Ireland,  and  that  no  such  goods,  wares,  or  mer 
chandises  imported  after  the  first  of  December  next,  be  used  or 
purchased." 

Mr.  Lee's  motion  was  warmly  debated  by  himself  and  many 
other  leading  men  in  Congress,  and  was  adopted,  by  unanimous 
vote,  on  Tuesday,  the  twenty-seventh.  On  the  following  day, 
Joseph  Galloway,  the  confidential  friend  of  Doctor  Franklin,  and 
one  of  the  most  able  and  popular  of  the  leaders  in  Pennsylvania, 
submitted  a  plan  of  union  which  came  very  near  proving  fatal  to 
the  cause  of  liberty  in  America.  To  those  who  had  not  examined 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  20. 


43G  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774 

the  great  subject  under  discussion  with  the  keen  analytical  eye  of  a 
philosopher,  and  relied  upon  temporary  expedients  for  redress  of 
grievances,  his  plan  appeared  feasible,  and  several  members,  allured 
by  its  promises  of  peace  and  security,  were  captivated  by  it.  When, 
on  the  morning  of  the  twenty-eighth,  a  proposition  for  a  non-expor 
tation  agreement  was  submitted,  Mr.  Galloway  arose,  and  said :  "  A 
general  non-importation  from  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  has  been 
adopted,  but,  I  think,  this  will  be  too  gradual  in  its  operations  for 
the  relief  of  Boston.  A  general  non-exportation  I  have  ever  looked 
on  as  an  undigested  proposition.  It  is  impossible  for  America  to 
exist  under  a  total  non-exportation.  We,  in  this  province,  should 
have  tens  of  thousands  of  people  thrown  upon  the  cold  hand  of 
charity.  Our  ships  would  lie  by  the  walls,  our  seamen  would  be 
thrown  out  of  bread,  our  shipwrights  out  of  employ  —  it  would 
effect  the  landed  interest,  and  it  would  weaken  us  in  another  strug 
gle  which  I  fear  is  too  near."* 

After  speaking  some  time  against  the  policy  of  interrupting  trade 
with  Great  Britain,  Mr.  Galloway  urged  the  necessity  of  a  supreme 
legislature  for  the  general  control  of  affairs.  Referring  to  events 
during  the  French  war,  he  said :  "  Requisitions  came  over.  A  num 
ber  of  the  colonies  gave  most  extensively  and  liberally ;  others 
gave  nothing,  or  gave  at  the  last.  Pennsylvania  gave  late,  not  for 
want  of  zeal  or  loyalty,  but  owing  to  their  disputes  with  the  pro 
prietaries.  They  were  disunited,  and  could  not  agree  upon  meas 
ures  for  the  common  good.  These  delinquencies  were  handed  up 
to  the  parentrstate,  and  gave  occasion  for  the  stamp-act.  Of  that 
act,  America,  with  the  greatest  reason  and  justice,  complained. 
Had  ministers  proposed  some  plan  of  policy,  some  conciliatory 
measures ;  had  some  negotiation  been  set  afoot,  it  would  have  ter 
minated  in  the  most  happy  harmony  between  the  two  countries. 
They  repealed  the  stamp-act,  but  they  passed  the  declaratory  act. 
Without  some  supreme  legislature,  some  common  arbiter,  you  are 
not,  say  they,  part  of  the  state."  "  We  want,"  he  continued,  "  the 
aid,  assistance,  and  protection  of  the  arm  of  our  mother-country. 

*  John  Adams's  Diary. 


^T.  42.]  GALLOWAY'S  PLAN.  437 

Protection  and  allegiance  are  reciprocal  duties.  Can  we  lay  claim 
to  the  money  and  protection  of  Great  Britain  upon  principles  of 
honor  or  conscience  ?  Can  we,  on  the  other  hand,  wish  to  become 
aliens  to  the  mother-state  ?  We  must  come  upon  terms  with  Great 
Britain.  Some  gentlemen  are  not  for  negotiation.  I  wish  I  could 
hear  some  reason  against  it.  I  am  as  much  a  friend  of  liberty  as 
exists  on  this  continent,  and  no  man  shall  go  further,  in  point  of 
fortune,  or  in  point  of  blood,  than  the  man  who  now  addresses  you, 
to  obtain  it,  but  I  think  it  the  highest  wisdom  to  hold  out  the  olive- 
branch  of  reconciliation  and  peace  until  the  last  moment."  He  then 
presented  his  plan,  which  contemplated  a  complete  union  of  the 
colonies,  with  a  grand  council  elected  by  the  several  colonies, 
authorized  to  regulate  colonial  affairs  jointly  with  the  British  Par 
liament,  each  to  have  a  mutual  negative  on  each  other — a  British- 
American  legislature.* 

This  proposition  elicited  the  most  important  debate  of  the  ses 
sion.  It  was  favorably  received  by  many  delegates  of  the  first 
ability ;  while  those  who  had  looked  deeper  into  the  causes  of  the 
crisis,  and  foresaw  the  improbability  of  such  a  measure  receiving 
the  sanction  of  the  king  and  Parliament,  were  alarmed,  and  vehe 
mently  opposed  it.  Patrick  Henry,  whose  jealousy  of  state-rights 
made  him  oppose  the  federal  constitution  fourteen  years  afterward, 
said :  "  We  shall  liberate  our  constituents  from  a  corrupt  house  of 
commons,  but  throw  them  into  the  arms  of  an  American  legislature, 
that  may  be  bribed  by  that  nation  which  avows,  in  the  face  of  the 
world,  that  bribery  is  a  part  of  her  system  of  government.  The 
original  constitution  of  the  colonies  was  founded  on  the  broadest 
and  most  generous  base.  The  regulation  of  our  trade  was  com 
pensation  enough  for  all  the  protection  we  ever  experienced  from 
her."f  It  was  on  this  occasion  that  Samuel  Adams,  regarding  the 
proposition  as  a  concession  to  tyranny,  uttered  those  noble  senti 
ments  which  he  reiterated  twenty  months  later,  when  debating  the 
resolution  on  independence — "I  should  advise,"  he  said,  "persisting 

*  This  plan  in  printed  in  full  in  Sabine's  Lives  of  the  American  Loyalists,  p.  309. 
•*•  John  Adams's  Diary 


438  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774 

in  our  struggle  for  liberty,  though  it  were  revealed  from  heaven 
that  nine  hundred  and  ninety-nine  were  to  perish,  and  only  one  of 
a  thousand  were  to  survive  and  retain  his  liberty !  One  such  free 
man  must  possess  more  virtue,  and  enjoy  more  happiness,  than  a 
thousand  slaves ;  and  let  him  propagate  his  like,  and  transmit  to 
them  what  he  has  so  nobly  preserved."  Mr.  Galloway's  plan  was 
defeated  by  a  majority  of  only  one  state. 

Looking  back  from  this  remote  stand-point,  upon  the  proceedings 
of  that  first  Congress,  as  they  appear  on  the  records,  we  are  apt  to 
think  that  there  was  very  little  diversity  of  opinion  among  the  dele 
gates,  and  that  everything  went  on  harmoniously.  On  the  contrary, 
there  was  the  greatest,  and  sometimes  apparently  irreconcileable 
differences  of  opinion,  among  those  whom  we  delight  to  honor  for 
their  wisdom,  patriotism,  and  boldness/1'  They  were  placed  in  a 
position  of  great  delicacy.  It  was  a  novel  one.  There  were  no 
precedents  to  consult.  The  alternatives  seemed  to  be  war,  or  dis 
honorable  peace ;  both  dreadful  in  the  sight  of  the  patriot  and 
Christian.  The  wonder  is  not  that  they  so  much  disagreed,  but 
that  they  ever  agreed  at  all  upon  those  plans  and  measures  which 
challenge  our  admiration,  and  which  led  to  the  independence  of  the 
colonies. 

The  consideration  of  the  grievances  of  the  colonies  was  not 
resumed  until  the  fourteenth  of  October.  In  the  meanwhile  several 
important  committees  were  appointed,  and  grave  measures  adopted. 
A  non-exportation  resolution  was  agreed  to  on  the  thirtieth  of 
September,  and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  bring  in  a  plan  for 
carrying  into  effect  the  non-importation,  non-consumption,  and  non- 
exportation  resolves.f  On  the  following  day  a  loyal  address  to 

*  The  Virginia  delegates  hesitated  to  come  into  the  measure  of  non-exportation,  on  the  ground 
of  insufficient  powers.  Judge  Drayton,  of  South  Carolina,  in  his  Memoirs  of  the  American  Revo 
lution,  i.,  168,  alluding  to  the  proceedings  on  that  point,  says:  "It  was  then  pressed  in  Congress, 
that  the  other  colonies  should,  in  this  measure,  act  independently  of  Virginia  ;  but  Maryland  and 
North  Carolina  represented,  that  as  their  exports  were  similar  to  those  of  Virginia,  so  they  could 
not,  with  any  advantage  to  the  common  cause,  act  independently  of  her  ;  for  their  own  commodities 
would  be  carried  to  the  Virginia  ports,  which  would  run  away  with  all  their  trade/'  But  the  dele 
gates  from  Virginia  finally  signed  the  agreement. 

t  The  committee  consisted  of  Thomas  Cushiug,  Isaac  Low,  Thomas  Miftiin,  Richard  Henry  Lee, 
and  Thomas  Johnson. 


jET.42.] 


THE  GUANTLET  CAST.  439 


his  majesty  was  resolved  on,  and  a  committee  appointed  to  prepare 
it.*  For  three  or  four  days,  the  subject  of  the  proper  matter  to  be 
contained  in  the  address  to  the  king,  was  debated. 

On  the  sixth  of  October,  during  a  debate  on  the  proper  means 
for  the  restoration  of  American  rights,  an  express  arrived  from  Bos 
ton  with  a  letter  from  the  committee  of  correspondence,  dated  the 
twenty-ninth  of  September,  giving  information  of  the  hostile  move 
ments  of  General  Gage,  and  his  fortifying  the  Neck  and  points  on 
the  peninsula.  On  the  following  day,  a  committee  was  appointedf 
to  prepare  a  letter  to  General  Gage,  representing  that  "  the  town 
of  Boston,  and  province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  are  considered  by 
all  Americans  as  suffering  in  the  common  cause,  for  their  noble  and 
spirited  opposition  to  oppressive  acts  of  Parliament,  calculated  to 
deprive  us  of  our  most  sacred  rights  and  privileges."  They  were 
also  to  draw  up  a  protest  against  his  warlike  measures,  and  entreat 
him  to  discontinue  his  fortifications.  On  the  following  day  the 
whole  business  of  Congress  was  the  consideration  of  the  letter 
from  Boston,  and  the  adoption  of  a  resolution,  "That  this  Congress 
approve  the  opposition  of  the  inhabitants  of  Massachusetts  Bay  to  the  execu 
tion  of  the  late  acts  of  Parliament ;  and  if  the  same  shall  be  attempted  to 
be  carried  info  execution  by  force,  in  such  case,  all  America  ought  to  support 
them  in  their  opposition."']^  This  was  a  noble  and  emphatic  re-affirma 
tion  of  the  resolution  already  given,  which  was  adopted  by  Congress 
on  the  seventeenth  of  September,  after  receiving  the  Suffolk  county 
resolves.  It  spoke  in  a  voice  still  more  decided  than  that  of  the 
former,  the  determination  of  the  Americans  to  fight  for  freedom 
rather  than  submit  to  inglorious  political  servitude. 

On  the  twelfth  of  October,  the  committee  appointed  to  prepare 
a  plan  for  carrying  into  effect  the  non-importation  agreement, 
brought  in  a  report,  which  was  laid  upon  the  table.  The  considera 
tion  of  the  subject  of  the  rights  and  grievances  of  the  colonies  was 
then  resumed,  and  after  being  debated  for  two  days,  Congress 

*  Richard  Henry  Lee,  John  Adams,  Thomas  Johnson,  Patrick  Henry,  and  John  Rutledge. 
t  Thomas  Lynch,  Samuel  Adams,  and  Edmund  Pendleton. 
J  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  24. 


440  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

unanimously  adopted  a  declaration  of  rights.  That  document 
summed  up  the  grievances  and  rights  of  the  colonies,  and  placed  the 
latter  on  the  triple  foundations  of  the  laws  of  nature,  the  English 
constitution,  and  the  colonial  charters.  It  declared,  that  as  the 
colonies  were  not,  and  from  their  peculiar  local  situation,  could  not 
be,  represented  in  the  British  Parliament,  they  were  entitled  to  a 
free  and  exclusive  power  of  legislation  in  their  respective  colonial 
legislatures,  where  they  were  represented,  and  where  alone,  taxation 
and  internal  polity  could  be  legislated  upon,  such  acts  being  subject, 
as  before,  to  the  negative  of  their  sovereign.  It  was  also  declared, 
that  from  a  regard  to  the  mutual  interests  of  both  countries,  they 
would  cheerfully  concede  to  Parliament  the  right  to  regulate  their 
external  commerce,  for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  commercial 
advantages  of  the  whole  to  the  mother-country,  and  the  commercial 
benefit  of  its  respective  members ;  but  that  every  idea  of  taxation, 
internal  and  external,  for  raising  a  revenue  on  the  subjects  in 
America,  without  their  consent,  should  be  excluded.  They  asserted 
the  great  and  inherent  right  guarantied  to  them  as  British  subjects, 
to  all  the  rights,  liberties,  and  immunities  of  free  and  natural  born 
subjects  within  the  realm  of  England ;  to  the  common  law  of  Eng 
land,  and  more  especially  to  the  great  and  inestimable  privilege  of 
being  tried  by  their  peers  of  the  vicinage,  according  to  the  course 
of  that  law ;  to  all  immunities  and  privileges  granted  and  confirmed 
to  them  by  royal  charters,  or  secured  by  their  several  codes  of 
provincial  laws,  and  the  right  peaceably  to  assemble,  consider  of 
their  grievances,  and  to  petition  the  king. 

They  then  enumerated  some  of  their  grievances,  and  the  acts  of 
Parliament  which  were  infringements  and  violations  of  their  rights ; 
and  concluded  by  the  following  declaration :  "  To  these  grievous 
acts  and  measures  Americans  can  not  submit ;  but,  in  hopes  their 
fellow-subjects  in  Great  Britain  will,  on  a  revision  of  them,  restore 
us  to  that  state  in  which  both  countries  found  happiness  and  pros 
perity,  we  have,  for  the  present,  only  resolved  to  pursue  the  follow 
ing  peaceable  measures :  1.  To  enter  into  a  non-importation,  non- 
consumption,  and  non-exportation  agreement  or  association.  2.  To 


&r.  42.J  NON-INTERCOURSE  WITH  BRITAIN.  441 

prepare  an  address  to  the  people  of  Great  Britain,  and  a  memorial 
to  the  inhabitants  of  British  America ;  and,  3.  To  prepare  a  loyal 
address  to  his  majesty,  agreeable  to  resolutions  already  entered 
into."* 

This  plan,  called  the  AMERICAN  ASSOCIATION,  was  taken  up  on  Satur 
day,  the  fifteenth,  and  debated  until  Thursday,  the  twentieth,  when 
it  was  read  and  signed  at  the  table  by  every  delegate  present,  fifty- 
two  in  number.f  As  this  was  the  great  act  of  the  first  continental 
Congress,  toward  which  all  other  proceedings  had  been  tending,  we 
here  give  the  several  articles  of  the  association  in  full,  as  they 
appear  in  the  record,  omitting  the  preamble  in  which  the  several 
grievances  of  the  colonies  are  recited : — 

"  To  obtain  redress  of  these  grievances,  which  threaten  destruc 
tion  to  the  lives,  liberty,  and  property  of  his  majesty's  subjects  in 
North  America,  we  are  of  opinion,  that  a  non-importation,  non- 
consumption,  and  non-exportation  agreement,  faithfully  adhered  to, 
will  prove  the  most  speedy,  effectual,  and  peaceable  measure : 
And,  therefore,  we  do,  for  ourselves  and  the  inhabitants  of  the 
several  colonies  whom  we  represent,  firmly  agree  and  associate, 
under  the  sacred  ties  of  virtue,  honor,  and  love  of  our  country,  as 
follows : — 

"  First.  That  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  December  next,  we 
will  not  import  into  British  America,  from  Great  Britain  or  Ireland, 
any  goods,  wares,  or  merchandises  whatever,  or  from  any  other 
place,  any  such  goods,  wares,  or  merchandises,  as  shall  have  been 
exported  from  Great  Britain  or  Ireland ;  nor  will  we,  after  that  day, 
import  any  East  India  tea  from  any  part  of  the  world ;  nor  any 
molasses,  syrups,  paneles,  coffee,  or  pimento,  from  the  British  plan 
tations,  or  from  Dominica ;  nor  wines  from  Madeira  or  the  Western 
islands ;  nor  foreign  indigo. 

"  Second.  We  will  neither  import  nor  purchase  any  slave  imported 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  28,  29,  30. 

t  It  is  related  that  the  earl  of  Dartmouth  inquired  of  an  American,  in  London,  of  how  many 
members  the  Congress  consisted  ?  The  reply  was,  "  Fifty- two."  —  "  Why  that  is  the  number  of 
cards  in  a  pack,"  said  his  lordship;  "  how  many  knaves  are  there  ?" —  "Not  one,"  answered  the 
American,  "your  lordship  will  please  to  recollect  that  knaves  are  court  cards." 


442  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

after  the  first  day  of  December  next ;  after  which  time  we  wrill 
wholly  discontinue  the  slave-trade,  and  wrill  neither  be  concerned 
in  it  ourselves,  nor  will  w7e  hire  our  vessels,  nor  sell  our  commodities 
or  manufactures  to  those  who  are  concerned  in  it. 

"  Third.  As  a  non-consumption  agreement,  strictly  adhered  to, 
will  be  an  effectual  security  for  the  observation  of  the  non-importa 
tion,  we,  as  above,  solemnly  agree  and  associate,  that  from  this  day, 
we  will  not  purchase  or  use  any  tea  imported  on  account  of  the 
East  India  Company,  or  any  on  which  a  duty  hath  been  or  shall  be 
paid ;  and  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  March  next,  WTC  will  not 
purchase  or  use  any  East  India  tea  whatever;  nor  wrill  we,  nor  shall 
any  person,  for  or  under  us,  purchase  or  use  any  of  those  goods, 
wares,  or  merchandise,  we  have  agreed  not  to  import,  which  we 
shall  know,  or  have  cause  to  suspect,  wrere  imported  after  the  first 
day  of  December,  except  such  as  come  under  the  rules  and  direc 
tions  of  the  tenth  article  hereafter  mentioned. 

"  Fourth.  The  earnest  desire  we  have  not  to  injure  our  fellow- 
subjects  in  Great  Britain,  Ireland,  or  the  West  Indies,  induces  us  to 
suspend  a  non-exportation  until  the  tenth  day  of  September,  1775; 
at  which  time,  if  the  said  acts  and  parts  of  acts  of  the  British 
Parliament  hereafter  mentioned,  are  not  repealed,  wre  will  not 
directly  or  indirectly,  export  any  merchandise  or  commodity  what 
soever,  to  Great  Britain,  Ireland,  or  the  West  indies,  except  rice  to 
Europe.* 

Fifth.  Such  as  are  merchants,  and  use  the  British  or  Irish  trade, 
will  give  orders  as  soon  as  possible,  to  their  factors,  agents,  and 
correspondents,  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  not  to  ship  any  goods 
to  them  on  any  pretence  whatever,  as  they  can  not  be  received  in 
America ;  and  if  any  merchant  residing  in  Great  Britain  or  Ireland, 

*  This  exception  was  made,  as  a  compromise,  to  secure  the  signature  of  the  South  Carolina 
delegation.  Mr.  Gadsden  says,  that  his  colleagues  were  so  strenuous  in  favor  of  excepting  rice  and 
indigo,  then  the  chief  productions  of  their  colony  which  were  exported,  that,  while  the  members 
were  signing  the  association,  the  exception  of  these  articles  not  being  inserted,  the  South  Carolina 
delegation  actually  withdrew,  and  the  union  so  nearly  formed,  was  likely  to  be  broken  up  by  their 
ungenerous  conduct.  A  compromise  was  finally  effected,  by  excepting  rice  and  not  indigo.  This 
discrimination  caused  a  violent  struggle  between  two  parties  in  the  provincial  legislature  of  South 
Carolina,  the  indigo  cultivators  considering  their  interests  sacrificed  for  the  benefit  of  the  rice- 
planters. —  See  W.  II.  Drayton's  Memoirs  of  the  American  Revolution,  i.,  168-174,  inclusive. 


jET.  42.]  NON-INTERCOURSE  WITH  BRITAIN.  443 

shall  directly  or  indirectly  ship  any  goods,  wares,  or  merchandise 
for  America,  in  order  to  break  the  said  non-importation  agreement, 
or  in  any  manner  contravene  the  same,  on  such  unworthy  conduct 
being  well  attested,  it  ought  to  be  made  public ;  and,  on  the  same 
being  so  done,  we  will  not,  from  thenceforth,  have  any  commercial 
connection  with  such  merchant. 

"  Sixth.  That  such  as  are  owners  of  vessels  will  give  positive 
orders  to  their  captains,  or  masters,  not  to  receive  on  board  their 
vessels  anv  goods  prohibited  by  the  said  non-importation  agree 
ment,  on  pain  of  immediate  dismission  from  their  service. 

"  Seventh.  We  will  use  our  utmost  endeavors  to  improve  the 
breed  of  sheep,  and  increase  their  number  to  the  greatest  extent ; 
and  to  that  end  we  will  kill  them  as  seldom  as  may  be,  especially 
those  of  the  most  profitable  kind ;  nor  will  we  export  any  to  the 
West  Indies  or  elsewhere  ;  and  those  of  us  who  are,  or  may  become 
overstocked  with,  or  can  conveniently  spare  any  sheep,  will  dispose 
of  them  to  our  neighbors,  especially  to  the  poorer  sort,  on  moderate 
terms. 

"Eighth.  We  will,  in  our  several  stations,  encourage  frugality, 
economy,  and  industry,  and  promote  agriculture,  arts,  and  manu 
factures  of  this  country,  especially  that  of  wool;  and  will  discoun 
tenance  and  discourage  every  species  of  extravagance  and  dissipa 
tion,  especially  all  horse-racing,  and  all  kinds  of  gaming,  cock- 
fighting,  exhibitions  of  shows,  plaj^s,  and  other  expensive  diversions 
and  entertainments;  and  on  the  death  of  any  relative  or  friend, 
none  of  us,  nor  any  of  our  families,  will  go  into  any  farther  mourn 
ing-dress,  than  a  black  crape  or  ribbon  on  the  arm  or  hat,  for  gen 
tlemen,  and  a  black  ribbon  and  necklace  for  ladies,  and  we  will 
discontinue  the  giving  of  gloves  and  scarfs  at  funerals. 

"  Ninth.  Such  as  are  venders  of  goods  or  merchandise  will  not 
take  advantage  of  the  scarcity  of  goods,  that  may  be  occasioned 
by  this  association,  but  will  sell  the  same  at  the  rates  we  have 
been  respectively  accustomed  to  do  for  twelve  months  last  past. 
And  if  any  vender  of  goods  or  merchandise  shall  sell  any  such 
goods  on  higher  terms,  or  shall,  in  any  manner,  or  by  any  device 


444  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

whatsoever,  violate  or  depart  from  this  agreement,  no  person  ought, 
nor  will  any  of  us  deal  with  such  person,  or  his  or  her  factor  or 
agent,  at  any  time  thereafter,  for  any  commodity  whatever. 

"  Tenth.  In  case  any  merchant,  trader,  or  other  person,  shall 
import  any  goods  or  merchandise,  after  the  first  day  of  December, 
and  before  the  first  day  of  February  next,  the  same  ought,  forth 
with,  at  the  election  of  its  owner,  to  be  either  reshipped,  or  deliv 
ered  up  to  the  committee  of  the  county  or  town  wherein  they  shall 
be  imported,  to  be  stored  at  the  risk  of  the  importer,  until  the  non 
importation  agreement  shall  cease,  or  be  sold  under  the  direction 
of  the  committee  aforesaid ;  and  in  the  last-mentioned  case,  the 
owner  or  owners  of  such  goods  shall  be  reimbursed,  out  of  the 
sales,  the  first  cost  and  charges,  the  profits,  if  any,  to  be  applied 
toward  relieving  and  employing  such  poor  inhabitants  of  the  town 
of  Boston,  as  are  immediate  sufferers  by  the  Boston  port-bill ;  and 
a  particular  account  of  all  goods  so  returned,  stored,  or  sold,  to  be 
inserted  in  the  public  papers ;  and  if  any  goods  or  merchandises 
shall  be  imported,  after  the  said  first  day  of  February,  the  same 
ought,  forthwith,  to  be  sent  back  again,  without  breaking  any  of 
the  packages  thereof. 

"  Eleventh.  That  a  committee  be  chosen  in  every  county,  city, 
and  town,  by  those  who  are  qualified  to  vote  for  representatives  in 
the  legislature,  whose  business  it  shall  be  attentively  to  observe  the 
conduct  of  all  persons  touching  this  association ;  and  when  it  shall 
be  made  to  appear,  to  the  satisfaction  of  a  majority  of  any  such 
committee,  that  any  person  within  the  limits  of  their  appointment 
has  violated  this  association,  that  such  majority  do,  forthwith,  cause 
the  truth  of  the  case  to  be  published  in  the  gazette,  to  the  end  that 
all  such  foes  to  the  rights  of  British  America  may  be  publicly 
known,  and  universally  contemned  as  the  enemies  of  American 
liberty ;  and  thenceforth  we  respectively  will  break  off  all  dealings 
with  him  or  her. 

"  Twelfth.  That  the  committee  of  correspondence,  in  the  respective 
colonies,  do  frequently  inspect  the  entries  of  their  customhouses, 
and  inform  each  other,  from  time  to  time,  of  the  true  state  thereof, 


,Er.  42.]  SIGNING  OF  THE  LEAGUE.  445 

and  of  every  other  material  circumstance  +hat  may  occur  relative 
to  this  association. 

"Thirteenth.  That  all  manufactures  of  this  country  be  sold  at 
reasonable  prices;  so  that  no  undue  advantages  be  taken  of  a  future 
scarcity  of  goods. 

"  Fourteenth.  And  we  do  further  agree  and  resolve,  that  we  will 
have  no  trade,  commerce,  dealings,  or  intercourse,  whatsoever,  with 
any  colony  or  province  in  North  America,  which  shall  not  accede 
to,  or  which  shall  hereafter  violate  this  association,  but  will  hold 
them  as  unworthy  of  the  rights  of  freemen,  and  as  inimical  to  the 
liberties  of  their  country. 

"  And  we  do  solemnly  bind  ourselves  and  our  constituents,  under 
the  ties  aforesaid,  to  adhere  to  this  association,  until  such  parts  of 
the  several  acts  of  Parliament  passed  since  the  close  of  the  last 
war,  as  impose  or  continue  duties  on  tea,  wine,  molasses,  sirups,  pan- 
eles,  coffee,  sugar,  pimento,  indigo,  foreign  paper,  glass,  and  painter's 
colors,  imported  into  America,  and  extend  the  powers  of  the  ad 
miralty  courts  beyond  their  ancient  limits,  deprive  the  American 
subject  of  trial  by  jury,  authorize  the  judge's  certificate  to  indem 
nify  the  prosecutor  from  damages,  that  he  might  otherwise  be  liable 
to  from  a  trial  by  his  peers,  require  oppressive  security  from  a 
claimant  of  ships  or  goods  seized,  before  he  shall  be  allowed  to 
defend  his  property,  are  repealed.  Also  until  the  several  other 
obnoxious  acts  of  Parliament  heretofore  mentioned  in  these  pages, 
should  be  repealed. 

"  The  foregoing  association  being  determined  upon  by  the  Con 
gress,  was  ordered  to  be  subscribed  by  the  several  members  thereof; 
and  thereupon,  we  have  hereunto  set  our  respective  names  accord 
ingly."* 

*  This  association  was  signed  by  all  the  delegates  mentioned  in  the  note  on  page  411,  except 
Mr.  Goldsborough,  of  Maryland,  who  was  not  present ;  and  with  the  addition  of  Henry  Wisner  and 
Simon  Boerum,  of  New  York ;  John  Dickenson  and  George  Ross,  of  Pennsylvania ;  Mathew 
Tilghman  and  Thomas  Johnson,  of  Maryland ;  and  William  Hooper,  Joseph  Hewes,  and  Richard 
Caswell,  of  North  Carolina. 

Notwithstanding  he  was  opposed  to  the  measure,  Joseph  Gallowav  signed  it,  at  the  head  of  the 
Pennsylvania  delegation.  He  soon  afterward  showed  disaffection.  Before  the  meeting  of  the 
second  continental  Congress,  the  following  May,  he  manifested  great  lukewarmness ;  and,  in  1776, 
he  abandoned  the  whigs,  and  became  one  of  the  most  violent  and  prescriptive  loyalists  of  the  time. 


446  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

The  names  of  the  delegates  who  last  signed  the  association,  were 
affixed  to  it  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  October.  Three  days  before, 
an  "  Address  to  the  People  of  Great  Britain,"  written  by  John  Jay, 
was  read  and  approved.  On  the  same  day  a  "  Memorial  to  the 
Inhabitants  of  the  British  Colonies,"  written  by  William  Livingston, 
was  also  read  and  approved.  On  the  following  day  it  was  resolved, 
"  as  the  opinion  of  this  Congress,  that  it  will  be  necessary  that 
another  Congress  should  be  held  on  the  tenth  day  of  May  next, 
unless  the  redress  of  grievances  wrhich  we  have  desired,  be  obtained 
before  that  time.  And  we  recommend  that  the  same  be  held  at 
the  city  of  Philadelphia,  and  that  all  the  colonies  in  North  America 
choose  deputies,  as  soon  as  possible,  to  attend  such  Congress." 

On  the  twenty-sixth  of  October,  an  "  Address  to  the  Inhabitants 
of  Quebec,"  written  by  John  Dickenson,  was  read  and  approved ; 
and  on  the  same  day,  a  "  Petition  of  Congress  to  the  King,"  drawn 
up  by  John  Adams,  and  corrected  by  John  Dickenson,  was  adopted. 
The  petition  to  the  king  was  signed  by  all  the  delegates  present, 
and  the  other  documents  by  the  president  and  secretary  of  Con 
gress  only. 

The  adoption  of  the  petition  to  the  king  was  the  last  public  act 
of  the  Congress,  and  on  that  day,  Wednesday,  the  twenty-sixth  of 
October,  1774,  that  body,  in  the  words  of  the  last  entry  in  the 
journal,  by  Secretary  Thomson,  "  dissolved  itself,"  after  a  session  of 
fifty-one  days. 

He  joined  the  royal  army  in  New  York,  where  he  continued  until  1778,  when,  accompanied  by  his 
only  daughter,  he  went  to  England.  There  he  remained  until  his  death,  in  1803.  His  estate, 
valued  at  two  hundred  thousand  dollars,  was  confiscated,  but  most  of  it  was  afterward  restored  to 
his  daughter,  as  it  was  derived  from  his  wife.  Galloway  was  a  good  writer,  and  his  pen  was  much 
employed  in  the  service  of  the  loyalists.  He  wrote  a  pamphlet,  entitled  "  A  Candid  Examination  of 
the  Mutual  Claims  of  Great  Britain  and  the  Colonies,"  in  which  he  explains  his  seeming  inconsis 
tency  in  subscribing  to  the  association.  He  says,  concerning  his  plan,  that  being  "read  and  seconded 
by  several  gentlemen  of  the  first  abilities,  after  a  long  debate,  was  so  far  approved,  as  to  be  thought 
worthy  of  further  consideration,  and  referred,  under  a  rule  for  that  purpose,  by  a  majority  of  the 
colonies.  Under  this  promising  aspect  of  things,  and  an  expectation  that  the  rule  would  have  been 
regarded,  or  at  least  that  something  rational  would  take  place  to  reconcile  our  unhappy  differences, 
the  member  proposing  it  [himself]  was  weakly  led  to  sign  the  non-importation  agreement,  although 
he  had  uniformly  opposed  it." 


JEr.  42.1  PARTING  OF  THE  DELEGATES.  447 


CHAPTEE    XLI. 

EFEECTS    OF  THE    PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  CONTINENTAL  CONGRESS LETTERS  OF 

REED  AND  GAGE  ON  THE  SUBJECT SATISFACTION  OF  LORD  CHATHAM CON 
DUCT  OF  THE  KING  AND  PARLIAMENT WASHINGTON  IN  CONGRESS PATRICK 

HENRY'S  OPINION  OF  HIM  —  CHATHAM'S  ESTIMATE  OF  THE  CONGRESS  —  WASH 
INGTON'S     CORRESPONDENCE     WITH     CAPTAIN     MACKENZIE OTHER     TESTIMONY 

RESPECTING    INDEPENDENCE WASHINGTON'S  RETURN  TO   MOUNT  VERNON DE 
PARTURE  OF  GEORGE  WILLIAM    FAIRFAX  FOR  ENGLAND DESTRUCTION  OF  BEL- 

VOIR SEPARATION  OF  FRIENDS. 

THE  proceedings  of  the  first  continental  Congress  when  published 
to  the  world,  produced  a  profound  sensation  on  both  sides  of  the 
Atlantic,  composed  of  the  emotions  of  joy,  fear,  hope,  indignation, 
and  exalted  admiration.  The  high  character  of  the  members  of 
that  great  council,  their  consistent  boldness,  their  loyalty  to  the 
throne,  their  exhibitions  of  statesmanship,  and  the  remarkable 
state-papers  which  they  put  forth  at  the  close,  challenged  the  most 
thorough  respect  of  every  reflective  mind,  and  made  the  subse 
quent  proceedings  of  the  British  cabinet  and  legislature,  in  relation 
to  America,  more  palpably  stupid  and  ridiculous  than  they  had  ever 
appeared  before.  The  delegates  had  been  unanimous  throughout 
the  session,  in  denying  the  right  of  Parliament  to  levy  internal  or 
external  taxes  upon  them,  and  they  had  differed  only  —  and  that 
very  widely  as  we  have  seen  —  in  the  mode  of  resistance  to  such 
oppression,  and  for  obtaining  a  redress  of  grievances.  They  sepa 
rated  as  they  had  assembled,  with  ardent  desires  to  serve  their 
country  and  benefit  mankind.  "  They  have  parted,"  wrote  Joseph 
Reed  to  Lord  Dartmouth,  "  with  great  affection  and  friendship,  and 
carry  to  their  several  provinces  the  fullest  resolutions  to  see  the 
measures  they  have  planned  duly  executed."  "  United  as  one 
man,"  Mr.  Reed  wrote  to  his  brother-in-law,  in  London,  "  and  breath- 


448  WASHINGTON.    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

ing  a  spirit  of  the  most  animating  kind,  the  colonies  are  resolved 
to  risk  the  consequences  of  opposition  to  the  late  edicts  of  Parlia 
ment.  All  ranks  of  people,  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  speak 
the  same  language,  and,  I  believe,  will  act  the  same  part.  I  know 
of  no  power  in  this  country  that  can  protect  an  opposer  of  the 
public  voice  and  conduct.  A  spirit  and  a  resolution  is  manifested 
which  would  not  have  disgraced  the  Romans  in  their  best  days. 
I  hope  they  will  mingle  with  them  prudence  and  temperance,  so  as 
to  avoid  extremities  as  long  as  possible.  No  man  dares  open  his 
mouth  against  non-importation."  Even  General  Gage,  who  had 
affected  contempt  for  the  Americans,  and  a  belief  that  the  Congress 
would  prove  unequal  to  the  task  of  uniting  the  continent  in  opposi 
tion  to  the  imperial  government,  was  compelled  to  express  his  fears 
of  a  different  result,  when  the  session  of  that  body  had  ended. 
"  The  proceedings  of  the  continental  Congress,"  he  wrote  to  Dart 
mouth,  "  astonish  and  terrify  all  considerate  men ;  but  though  I  am 
confident  that  many  of  their  resolutions  neither  can  nor  will  be 
observed,  I  fear  they  will  be  generally  received,  as  there  does  not 
appear  to  be  resolution  and  strength  enough,  among  the  more 
sensible  and  moderate  people  in  any  of  the  provinces,  openly  to 
reject  them." 

The  spirit  of  the  delegates,  and  the  results  of  their  delibera 
tions,  found  a  sympathetic  response  in  England,  even  from  that 
citadel  of  aristocracy,  the  house  of  lords.  "I  have  not  words  to 
express  my  satisfaction,"  wrote  the  earl  of  Chatham,  "  that  the 
Congress  has  conducted  this  most  arduous  and  delicate  business 
with  such  manly  wisdom  and  calm  resolution,  as  do  the  highest 
honor  to  their  deliberations.  Very  few  are  the  things  contained  in 
their  resolves,  that  I  could  wish  had  been  otherwise.  Upon  the 
•whole,  I  think  it  must  be  evident  to  every  unprejudiced  mind  in 
England,  who  feels  for  the  rights  of  mankind,  that  America,  under 
all  her  oppressions  and  provocations,  holds  forth  to  us  the  most  fair 
and  just  opening  for  restoring  harmony  and  affectionate  intercourse, 
as  heretofore.  I  trust  that  the  minds  of  men  are  more  than  begin 
ning  to  change  on  this  great  subject,  so  little  understood ;  and  that 


^T.  42.]  PROCEEDINGS  IN  PARLIAMENT.  449 

it  will  be  found  impossible  for  freemen  in  England,  to  wish  to  see 
three  millions  of  Englishmen  slaves  in  America."*  Not  so  thought 
the  misguided  king  and  his  cabinet;  and  a  corrupt  Parliament, 
then  the  mere  echo  of  the  voice  from  the  throne,  acted  in  accord 
ance  with  the  monarch's  thoughts.  In  a  speech  from  the  throne, 
on  the  twentieth  of  November,  the  king  informed  Parliament  that 
a  most  daring  spirit  of  resistance  and  disobedience  to  the  laws  un 
happily  prevailed  in  the  province  of  Massachusetts ;  that  those 
proceeedings  were  countenanced  and  encouraged  in  his  other  colo 
nies  ;  that  unwarrantable  attempts  were  made  to  obstruct  the  com 
merce  of  his  kingdom  by  unlawful  combinations ;  and  that  he  had 
taken  measures,  and  given  such  orders  as  he  judged  most  proper 
and  effectual,  for  carrying  into  execution  the  acts  passed  in  the 
commencement  of  the  year  in  regard  to  Massachusetts.  To  this 
speech,  as  in  apparent  duty  bound,  both  houses  of  Parliament,  by 
large  majorities,  responded  Amen,  in  re-echoing  addresses ;  and  they 
adjourned  for  the  Christmas  holy  days,  without  troubling  themselves 
further  about  the  American  colonies,  where  the  agitation  of  the 
public  mind  can  not  be  fully  comprehended  at  this  day. 

We  have  no  record  of  the  part  taken  by  Colonel  Washington  in 
the  first  continental  Congress.  He  did  not  engage  in  the  public 
debates,  for  he  had  no  abilities  as  an  extemporary  speaker.  Nor 
does  his  name  appear  in  the  journals  of  the  proceedings  as  a  mem 
ber  of  any  committee  during  the  session.  His  diary  shows  that  he 
was  assiduous  in  his  attendance  at  Carpenters'  hall,  whenever  Con 
gress  was  in  session ;  and  while  he  exhibited  no  marked  brilliancy 
to  the  outside  world,  those  who  were  brought  into  daily  intercourse 
with  him  in  the  discussion  of  the  great  subjects  which  occupied  the 

*  Earl  of  Chatham  to  Stephen  Sayre :  "  Correspondence  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham,"  iv.,  368. 
Mr.  Sayre  was  a  native  of  New  York,  and  a  successful  banker  in  London.  In  1773,  he  was  elected 
one  of  the  sheriffs  of  London.  Dr.  Franklin  said,  in  a  letter  to  his  son,  in  July  of  that  year,  "  The 
new  sheriffs  elect  of  London  (could  you  think  it?)  are  both  Americans,  viz.  :  Mr.  Sayre,  the  New 
Yorker,  and  Mr.  William  Lee,  the  brother  of  Dr.  Lee."  In  October,  1775,  Mr.  Sayre,  who  was 
known  to  have  been  a  true  friend  of  the  Americans,  was  accused  of  having  asserted,  that  he  and 
others  intended  to  seize  the  king  on  his  way  to  Parliament,  take  possession  of  the  town,  and  over 
throw  the  government.  Lord  Rochford,  one  of  the  secretaries  of  state,  caused  him  to  be  committed 
to  the  Tower,  and  his  papers  to  be  seized.  Sayre  was  acquitted,  and  prosecuted  Rochford  for  seizing 
his  papers.  The  corrupt  court  awarded  him  five  thousand  dollars  damages,  on  conditions  that  pre 
vented  bis  recovery  of  the  money. 

29 


450  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

thoughts  of  that  national  council,  perceived  and  appreciated  his 
substantial  worth.  Patrick  Henry,  when  asked,  on  his  return  home, 
whom  he  considered  the  greatest  man  in  Congress,  replied :  "  If 
you  speak  of  eloquence,  Mr.  Rutledge,  of  South  Carolina,  is  by  far 
the  greatest  orator;  but  if  you  speak  of  solid  information  and 
sound  judgment,  Colonel  Washington  is  unquestionably  the  great 
est  man  on  that  floor. 

With  such  testimony  before  us,  we  are  warranted  in  the  conclu 
sion,  that  in  the  preparation  of  the  state-papers  written  by  Lee, 
Jay,  Adams,  Dickinson,  and  Livingston,  the  mind  of  Washington — 
his  "solid  information  and  sound  judgment" — had  much  to  do;  for 
the  committees  were  in  continual  consultation  with  the  other  mem 
bers  of  the  Congress.  Of  the  character  of  those  papers,  and  the 
men  who  produced  them,  the  great  Chatham  expressed  his  opinion 
in  a  remarkable  speech  on  American  affairs  in  the  house  of  lords, 
in  January  following,  when  he  said :  "  When  your  lordships  look  at 
the  papers  transmitted  us  from  America ;  when  you  consider  their 
decency,  firmness,  and  wisdom,  you  can  not  but  respect  their  cause, 
and  wish  to  make  it  your  own.  For  myself,  I  must  declare  and 
avow,  that  in  all  my  reading  and  observation — and  it  has  been  my 
favorite  study — I  have  read  Thucydides,  and  have  studied  and 
admired  the  master-states  of  the  old  world — that  for  solidity  of 
reasoning,  force  of  sagacity,  and  wisdom  of  conclusion,  under  such 
a  complication  of  difficult  circumstances,  no  nation  or  body  of  men 
can  stand  in  perference  to  the  general  Congress  at  Philadelphia,"* 

But  while  we  can  not  positively  hear  the  voice,  nor  see  the  hand 
of  Washington  in  the  proceedings  of  that  old  Congress,  we  are  not 
ignorant  of  his  sentiments.  At  the  close  of  September,  he  received 
a  letter  from  his  old  friend  and  companion-in-arms,  Captain  Robert 
Mackenzie,  who  had  been  at  the  head  of  a  company  in  Washing 
ton's  Virginia  regiment  in  the  French  and  Indian  war.  Captain 
Mackenzie  was  now  a  commissioned  officer  in  the  regular  army, 
and  attached  to  the  forty-third  regiment  of  foot,  stationed  at  Boston. 

*  Hugh  Boyd's  Report  of  Chatham's  two  speeches  on  this  occasion,  published  by  Dodsley,  in 
the  year  1779. 


JE-r.  42.]  LETTER  TO  MACKENZIE.  451 

He  and  Washington  had  maintained  a  very  friendly  relationship, 
and  in  the  letter  in  question,  he  informed  his  friend  that  he  should 
stop  at  Mount  Vernon  on  his  way  to  or  from  the  James  river, 
during  the  approaching  winter,  and  added :  "  Mr.  Acheson  can 
sufficiently  inform  you  of  the  state  of  this  unhappy  province,  of 
their  tyrannical  oppression  over  one  another,  of  their  fixed  aim  at 
total  independence,  of  the  weakness  and  temper  of  the  mainsprings 
that  set  the  whole  in  motion,  and  how  necessary  it  is  that  abler 
heads  and  better  hearts  should  draw  a  line  for  their  guidance.... 
The  rebellious  and  numerous  meetings  of  men  in  arms,  their  scan 
dalous  and  ungenerous  attacks  upon  the  best  characters  in  the 
province,  obliging  them  to  save  themselves  by  flight,  and  their 
repeated  but  feeble  threats  to  dispossess  the  troops,  have  furnished 
sufficient  reasons  to  General  Gage  to  put  the  town  in  a  formidable 
state  of  defence,  about  which  we  are  now  fully  employed,  and 
which  will  be  shortly  accomplished  to  their  great  mortification." 
This  letter  was  written  only  four  days  before  the  general  Congress, 
by  unanimous  vote,  adopted  the  quarrel  of  Massachusetts  as  the 
concern  of  the  nation.  Washington  answered  this  letter  on  Sun 
day,  the  ninth  of  October.*  After  expressing  his  pleasure  on 
hearing  that  Mackenzie  would  visit  Mount  Yernon,  he  said : 
"  When  I  have  said  this,  permit  me,  with  the  freedom  of  a  friend 
(for  you  know  I  always  esteemed  you),  to  express  my  sorrow  that 
fortune  should  place  you  in  a  service  that  must  fix  curses  to  the 
latest  posterity  upon  the  contrivers,  and,  if  success  (which,  by- 
the-by,  is  impossible)  accompanies  it,  execrations  upon  all  those 
who  have  been  instrumental  in  the  execution....  I  conceive  that 
when  you  condemn  the  conduct  of  the  Massachusetts  people,  you 
reason  from  effects,  not  causes;  otherwise  you  would  not  won 
der  at  a  people,  who  are  every  day  receiving  fresh  proofs  of  a 
systematic  assertion  of  arbitrary  power,  deeply  planned  to  over 
throw  the  laws  and  constitution  of  their  country,  and  to  violate  the 

*  "October  9.  —  Went  to  the  presbyterian  meeting  in  the  forenoon,  and  the  Romish  church  in 
the  afternoon:  dined  at  Bevans's." — Washington's  Diary.  John  Adams,  who  attended  the  same 
Romish  church  that  afternoon,  says  in  his  diary  :  "  Heard  a  good  discourse  upon  the  duty  of  parents 
to  children,  founded  in  justice  and  charity." 


452  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

most  essential  and  valuable  rights  of  mankind."  After  assuring 
him  that  he  was  surrounded  by  venal  men,  who,  for  honors  or 
pecuniary  gratifications,  were  ready  to  introduce  arbitrary  govern 
ment,  he  continued :  "  Although  you  are  taught,  by  discoursing 
with  such  men,  to  believe  that  the  people  of  Massachusetts  are 
rebellious,  setting  up  for  independence,  and  what  not,  give  me 
leave,  my  good  friend,  to  tell  you,  that  you  are  abused,  grossly 
abused.  This  I  advance  with  a  degree  of  confidence  and  boldness, 
which  may  claim  your  belief,  having  better  opportunities  of  know 
ing  the  real  sentiments  of  the  people  you  are  among,  from  the 
leaders  of  them,  in  opposition  to  the  present  measures  of  the 
administration,  than  you  have  from  those  whose  business  it  is  not 
to  disclose  truths,  but  to  misrepresent  facts,  in  order  to  justify,  as 
much  as  possible,  to  the  world  their  own  conduct.*  Give  me  leave 
to  add,  and  I  think  I  can  announce  it  as  a  fact,  that  it  is  not  the 
wish  or  interest  of  that  government,  or  any  other  upon  this  conti 
nent,  separately  or  collectively,  to  set  up  for  independence;  but 
this  you  may,  at  the  same  time,  rely  on,  that  none  of  them  will 
ever  submit  to  the  loss  of  those  valuable  rights  and  privileges 
which  are  essential  to  the  happiness  of  every  free  state,  and  with 
out  which  life,  liberty,  and  property  are  rendered  totally  insecure". . . . 
"Is  it  to  be  wondered  at,"  he  continued,  "that  men  who  wish  to 
avert  the  impending  blow  should  attempt  to  oppose  it  in  its  prog 
ress,  or  prepare  for  their  defence,  if  it  can  not  be  averted  ?  Surely 
I  may  be  allowed  to  answer  in  the  negative ;  and  again  give  me 
leave  to  add,  as  my  opinion,  that  more  blood  will  be  spilled  on  this 
occasion,  if  the  ministry  are  determined  to  push  matters  to  ex 
tremity,  than  history  has  ever  yet  furnished  instances  of  in  the 
annals  of  North  America,  and  such  a  vital  wound  will  be  given  to 

*  Washington  had  spared  no  pains  to  ascertain  the  sentiments  of  the  delegates  from  the  different 
provinces,  on  this,  as  well  as  on  other  questions  then  occupying  the  public  mind,  for  it  can  not  be 
denied,  that  the  idea  of  the  political  independence  of  the  colonies,  not  only  existed  in  some  minds, 
but  had  found  indirect  expression  already.  Washington  alludes  to  his  interview  with  the  delegation 
from  Massachusetts,  in  the  sentence  above  quoted.  He  entered  in  his  diary,  on  the  twenty-eighth 
of  September,  the  following :  "  Spent  the  afternoon  with  the  Boston  gentlemen."  John  Adams 
entered  in  his  own  diary,  on  the  same  day :  "  Dined  with  Mr.  R.  Penn  ....  Spent  the  evening  with 
Colonel  Lee,  Colonel  Washington,  and  Doctor  Shippen,  who  came  in  to  consult  with  us." 


Mr.  42.]  LOYALTY  OF  THE  AMERICANS.  453 

the  peace  of  this  great  country  as  time  itself  can  not  cure,  or  eradi 
cate  the  remembrance  of."  In  conclusion,  Washington  repeated  his 
assurances,  that  independence  was  not  thought  of.  "I  am  well 
satisfied,"  he  said,  "  that  no  such  thing  is  desired  by  any  thinking 
man  in  all  North  America;  on  the  contrary,  that  it  is  the  ardent 
wish  of  the  warmest  advocates  for  liberty,  that  peace  and  tran 
quillity,  upon  constitutional  grounds,  may  be  restored,  and  the 
horrors  of  civil  discord  prevented."* 

This  is  important  testimony  in  proof  of  the  genuine  loyalty  of 
the  Americans,  and  the  sincerity  of  their  representatives  in  Con 
gress,  in  what  they  set  forth  in  their  petition  to  the  king  and 
address  to  the  people  of  Great  Britain.")*  These  assurances  in  a 
private  letter,  that  the  Americans  were  seeking  for  justice,  not 
independence,  is  an  iteration  of  the  ninth  resolution  adopted  by 
the  meeting  at  Fairfax  courthouse,  on  the  eighteenth  of  July 
previously,  over  which  Washington  presided  ;f  and  a  confiftnation 
of  the  assurances  which  Joseph  Reed  gave  to  Lord  Dartmouth,  in 
a  letter  written  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  September.  Alluding  to  the 
falsehoods  of  venal  men,  he  said :  "  Such  men,  my  lord,  have  wick 
edly  practised  upon  the  unsuspecting  integrity  of  our  best  friends 
in  Britain,  infused  jealousies  of  independence,  and  what  not,  which 
the  true  friends  of  government  in  this  country  never  perceived  the 
least  foundation  for.  It  would  be  equally  fair  to  judge  of  his 
majesty  from  the  publications  of  Junius,  as  of  this  country  from 
such  representations,  or  from  the  hasty  and  violent  resolves  of 
inconsiderable  town-meetings.  No  king  ever  had  more  loyal  sub- 


*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.,  399. 

t  In  that  address  they  say :  "  You  have  been  told,  that  we  are  seditious,  impatient  of  govern 
ment,  and  desirous  of  independence.  Be  assured  that  these  are  not  facts,  but  calumnies."  We 
omitted  to  mention,  in  the  proper  place,  that  the  "  Declaration  of  Rights"  adopted  by  the  continen 
tal  Congress,  of  which  a  synopsis  is  given  in  chapter  xl.,  was  undoubtedly  written  by  Samuel 
Adams.  Although  there  exists  no  positive  proof  of  such  authorship,  the  circumstantial  evidence  is 
so  convincing,  that  a  doubt  is  inadmissible.  This  evidence  will  be  given  in  full,  in  the  "Life  and 
Writings  of  Samuel  Adams,"  now  in  preparation,  from  original  materials,  by  William  V.  Wells,  Esq., 
a  great-grand-son  of  the  distinguished  patriot,  who  has  kindly  permitted  us  to  examine  his  manu 
script.  We  shall  again  have  occasion  to  refer  to  this  valuable  source  of  information.  And  we  deem 
it  proper  here  to  say,  that  the  work  will  be  one  of  the  most  important  contributions  ever  made  to  our 
historical  literature. 

{  See  page  400. 


454  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

jects ;  or  any  country  more  affectionate  colonists  than  the  Ameri 
cans  were.  I,  who  am  but  a  young  man,*  well  remember  when  the 
former  was  always  mentioned  with  respect  approaching  to  adoration ; 
and  to  be  an  Englishman  was  alone  a  sufficient  recommendation  for 
any  office  of  friendship  and  civility.  But  I  confess,  with  the  great 
est  concern,  that  these  happy  days  seem  passing  swiftly  away,  and 
unless  some  plan  of  accommodation  can  be  speedily  formed,  the 
affection  of  the  colonists  will  be  irrevocably  lost."*)*  We  shall  again 
recur  to  this  subject. 

Congress,  as  we  have  seen,  "  dissolved  itself"  on  the  twenty-sixth 
of  October.  On  that  evening  all  the  delegates  met  at  the  City 
tavern,  where  they  spent  the  hours  in  agreeable  social  intercourse, 
and  friendly  leave-taking.  Early  the  next  morning  Washington 
started  for  home.  He  dined  at  Chester,  and  lodged  at  New  Castle, 
in  Delaware ;  and  three  days  afterward  he  was  at  Mount  Yernon. 
His  arKval  was  a  joy  to  his  loving  wife,  for  she  still  wept,  in  the 
hours  of  her  loneliness,  over  the  loss  of  her  daughter.  Her  son  was 
now  away  with  his  bride,  and  these  voids  made  the  absence  of  her 
husband  more  painful  to  her.  And  there  had  been  a  social  bereave 
ment  in  the  neighborhood,  which  deepened  the  loneliness.  Colonel 
Washington's  warm  friend  and  nearest  neighbor,  George  William 
Fairfax,  had  left  the  country  to  become  the  possessor  of  estates  in 
England,  and  when  Washington  returned  to  Mount  Vernon,  Belvoir, 
the  beautiful  seat  of  his  friend,  was  in  charge  of  a  steward.  Fire, 
ignited  by  accident,  soon  afterward  consumed  it ;  and  the  kindling 
of  the  war  of  the  Revolution  at  almost  the  same  moment,  pre 
vented  its  owner,  who  was  a  loyalist,  from  returning  to  America. 
Thus  suddenly  was  Belvoir  mansion  swept  from  existence,  and  the 
social  intercourse  of  two  long-tried  friends  was  closed  for  ever. 
George  Washington  and  George  William  Fairfax  never  met  again. 

*  Mr.  Reed  was  then  thirty-three  years  of  age. 

t  Life  and  Correspondence  of  President  Reed,  i.,  76. 


42.]  THE  QUAKERS.  455 


CHAPTER   XLII. 

OPPOSITION    OF    THE    QUAKERS THEIR    ATTEMPT    TO  PRODUCE    DISUNION  IN    CON 
GRESS THEIR      LOYAL      TESTIMONY CAUSES      OF     THE      DISAFFECTION THE 

"QUAKER  COMPANY"  —  SECRET  INFLUENCE  OF  THE  QUAKERS  —  VIGILANCE  OF 

CONGRESS QUAKERS   AND    OTHERS    BANISHED  TO  VIRGINIA WASHINGTON'S 

ORDERS    CONCERNING    QUAKERS EXECUTION    OF   ROBERTS  AND  CARLISLE 

INFLUENCES    OF    OTHER   RELIGIOUS    DENOMINATIONS THE   ASSOCIATION    EN 
FORCED APPROACH  OF  CIVIL  WAR THE  VOICE  OF  JOSIAH  QUINCY,  JR. 

WE  will  leave  Washington  in  his  retirement  for  awhile,  and  note 
the  course  of  political  events  after  the  dissolution  of  the  Congress, 
in  which  he  was  so  deeply  interested  and  engaged. 

The  most  subtle  and  powerful  opponents  of  the  union  and  har 
mony  of  the  colonies,  in  1774,  and  for  sometime  afterward,  were 
the  Quakers  of  Pennsylvania,  whose  influence  was  then  controlling 
in  the  affairs  of  that  province.  Unlike  the  Quakers  of  our  day, 
they  were  much  engaged  in  public  matters ;  and  by  a  system  of 
unequal  representation,  they  had,  at  the  time  in  question,  a  majority 
of  their  sect  in  the  Pennsylvania  house  of  assembly.  Among  the 
most  influential  members  of  this  sect,  were  Israel  and  James  Pein- 
berton,  men  of  wealth  and  extensive  family  connections.  Israel 
appears  to  have  been  a  far-sighted  politician ;  and  during  the  ses 
sion  of  the  continental  Congress,  he  managed  to  collect  quite  a 
number  of  the  delegates  and  of  his  own  people,  in  Carpenters'  hall, 
at  an  early  hour  one  evening,  to  listen  to  some  communications. 
The  object  of  the  meeting  was  unknown  until  Israel  arose  and 
remarked,  that  the  Congress  was  endeavoring  to  form  a  union  of 
the  colonies,  but  that  there  were  grave  difficulties  in  the  way  of 
such  a  consummation.  He  then  enumerated,  among  other  difficul 
ties,  the  Sunday  laws  of  New  England,  and  the  subjection  of  all 
sects  to  an  assessment,  levied  in  Massachusetts,  for  building  churches. 


456  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1774. 

He  called  these,  infringements  upon  the  rights  of  conscience,  and 
asked  the  Massachusetts  delegates  to  assure  the  Quakers,  that  in 
the  event  of  union,  these  laws  should  be  repealed,  and  that  the 
more  liberal  system  of  Pennsylvania  should  generally  prevail. 
John  Adams,  who  now  perceived  the  object  of  the  meeting,  replied 
with  a  warmth  which  was  in  strong  contrast  with  the  mildness  of 
Israel.  He  told  the  Quakers  that  no  such  assurance  should  be 
given,  for  those  lawrs  were  in  accordance  with  the  conscience  of 
New  England,  and  that  they  "might  as  well  turn  the  heavenly 
bodies  out  of  their  annual  and  diurnal  courses,  as  the  people  of 
Massachusetts  from  their  meeting-house  and  Sunday  laws."  Pem- 
berton  rejoined,  that  liberty  of  conscience  rested  not  in  such  laws, 
and  that  they  ought  not  to  be  respected.  It  was  the  opinion  of 
Adams  and  others  at  that  time,  that  this  movement  was  intended 
to  prevent  the  union,  and  to  retain  the  Pennsylvania  Quakers  on 
the  side  of  the  king.  Subsequent  events  appeared  to  warrant  such 
conclusion ;  but  the  title  of  "  artful  Jesuit,"*  which  Adams  applied 
to  Pemberton,  was  not  justified  by  his  character. 

At  about  this  time  (October,  1774),  a  yearly  meeting  of  the 
society  of  Quakers,  which  had  convened  on  the  twenty-fourth  of 
September,  had  been  concluded,  and  the  members  had  gone  home, 
leaving  the  consideration  of  public  matters,  in  which  they  had  a 
concern,  in  charge  of  a  committee  in  Philadelphia,  of  which  Pem 
berton  was  an  active  member.  That  meeting  was  a  very  important 
one,  and  from  it  went  forth  an  epistle  which  gave  great  offence  to 
the  friends  of  liberty  throughout  the  colonies.  No  doubt  a  large 
number  of  the  Quakers  sympathized  with  the  proceedings  of  the 
Congress,  but  their  doctrine  of  non-resistance,  enforced  by  their 
"  Discipline,"  made  them  pause.  The  tendency  of  events-  was  to 
ward  war.  They  were  much  perplexed,  and  held  extraordinary 
and  protracted  meetings,  extending  sometimes  far  into  the  evening, 
while  considering  what  to  do.  They  perceived  a  growing  spirit 
abroad  favorable  to  the  strict  enforcement  of  the  American  Associa 
tion,  and  to  this  they  were  opposed,  in  principle,  because  it  usurped, 

#  John  Adams's  Autobiography. 


jET.  42.]  OPPOSITION  OF  THE  QUAKERS.  457 

in  their  estimation,  the  dearest  prerogatives  of  conscience,  and 
pronounced  the  exercise  of  honest  opinion  to  be  a  political  mis 
demeanor. 

When,  early  in  November,  1774,  a  great  committee  was  to  be 
chosen  in  Philadelphia  to  carry  the  association  into  execution,  the 
Quakers  directed  the  members  of  their  society  not  to  serve  upon 
it;*  and  mhen  the  patriots  of  that  province  called  a  provincial 
convention  to  meet  in  Philadelphia  in  January,  1775,  the  Quakers 
called  a  special  meeting  of  the  society,  to  convene  at  the  same  time 
and  place,  with  the  evident  intention  of  counteracting  the  republi 
can  tendency  of  the  political  convention.  And  yet,  strangely 
paradoxical  as  it  appears,  the  assembly  of  Pennsylvania,  in  which 
there  was  a  clear  majority  of  Quakers,  actually  passed  a  resolution, 
on  the  tenth  of  December,  approving  of  the  conduct  of  Congress. 
This  result,  which  elicited  the  expressed  astonishment  of  Governor 
Penn,*j-  was  wrought  by  the  skilful  management  of  John  Dickinson 
and  Thomas  Mifflin ;  and  before  the  close  of  the  session,  delegates 
for  the  Congress  of  1775  were  chosen. 

The  meeting  held  in  January,  was  composed  of  the  great  body 
of  the  Quakers  in  the  colonies  of  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey. 
On  the  seats  of  the  preacher's  gallery  were  seen  many  of  their 
shining  lights  of  that  day.  At  the  head  sat  James  Pemberton,  the 
leading  minister  of  the  sect ;  erect,  immoveable,  with  both  hands 
crossed  on  the  top  of  his  long  cane.  There,  too,  was  seen  the 
sunny  face  of  Nicholass  Wain ;  and  near  him  frowned  the  severe, 
dark  features  of  Thomas  Scattergood.  There,  too,  with  his  head 
buried  to  the  coat  collar  in  his  broad-brimmed  hat,  was  the  thoughtful 
Arthur  Howell;  and  in  the  testimonies  and  deliberations  were 

*  Letter  of  Joseph  Heed  to  Josiah  Quincy,  Nov.  6,  1774. 

t  On  the  thirty-first  of  December,  Governor  Penn  wrote  to  the  ministry :  "  Since  my  last  the 
assembly  of  this  province  have  met  agreeably  to  adjournment,  and  have,  to  mv  great  surprise,  unan 
imously  approved  the  transactions  of  the  late  Congress,  and  appointed  deputies  to  attend  another." 
According  to  Caesar  Rodney,  one  of  the  delegates  in  Congress,  Governor  Penn  reallv  sympathized 
with  the  patriots.  Speaking  of  his  brother,  Richard  Penn,  as  a  friend  to  liberty,  and  very  kind  to 
the  delegates,  Mr.  Rodney  remarked,  in  a  letter  to  his  own  brother,  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  Septem 
ber,  1774  :  "  More  or  less,  dine  with  him  every  day;  and  his  brother  wishes  his  station  would  admit 
of  his  acting  the  same  part.  All  these  matters  are  for  your  own  private  speculation,  and  not  for 
public  view." 


458  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

heard  the  soft  voice  of  William  Savery,  in  beautiful  and  harmo 
nious  contrast  with  that  of  Daniel  Offley,  the  stalwart  smith,  who, 
"among  his  dozen  hammer-men,  was  always  accustomed  to  raise 
his  piercing  voice  distinctly  above  their  pattering  sounds."* 

Long  and  earnestly  did  the  Quakers  deliberate  how  they  should 
defeat  the  pacific  proceedings  of  the  continental  Congress ;  and  on 
the  twenty-fourth  of  January,  they  sent  forth  the  following  TESTI 
MONY  : — -j- 

"  Having  considered,  with  real  sorrow,  the  unhappy  contest 
between  the  legislature  of  Great  Britain  and  the  people  of  these 
colonies,  and  the  animosities  consequent  thereon,  we  have,  by  re 
peated  public  advices  and  private  admonitions,  used  our  endeavors 
to  dissuade  the  members  of  our  religious  society  from  joining  with 
the  public  resolutions  promoted  and  entered  into  by  some  of  the 
people,  which,  as  we  apprehended,  so  we  now  find,  have  increased 
contention,  and  produced  great  discord  and  confusion.  The  Divine 
principle  of  grace  and  truth  which  we  profess  leads  all  who  attend 
to  its  dictates  to  demean  themselves  as  peaceable  subjects,  and  to 
discountenance  and  avoid  every  measure  tending  to  excite  disaffec 
tion  to  the  king  as  supreme  magistrate,  or  to  the  legal  authority  of 
his  government,  to  which  purpose  many  of  the  late  political  writings 
and  addresses  to  the  people  appearing  to  be  calculated,  we  are  led 
by  a  sense  of  duty  to  declare  our  entire  disapprobation  of  them, 
their  spirit  and  temper  being  not  only  contrary  to  the  nature  and 
precepts  of  the  gospel,  but  destructive  of  the  peace  and  harmony 
of  civil  society,  disqualifies  men,  in  these  times  of  difficulty,  for  the 
wise  and  judicious  consideration  and  promoting  of  such  measures 
as  would  be  most  effectual  for  reconciling  differences,  or  obtaining 
the  redress  of  grievances. 

"  From  our  past  experience  of  the  clemency  of  the  king  and  his 
royal  ancestors,  we  have  ground  to  hope  and  believe  that  decent 
and  respectful  addresses  from  those  who  are  vested  with  legal 

*  Watson's  Annals  of  Philadelphia,  i.,  507. 

t  "  The  Testimony  of  the  people  called  Quakers,  given  forth  by  a  meeting  of  the  representatives 
of  said  people  in  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey,  held  at  Philadelphia  the  twenty-fourth  day  of  the 
first  month,  1775  " 


JET.  43.]  TESTIMONY  OF  THE  QUAKERS.  459 

authority,  representing  the  prevailing  dissatisfactions  and  the  cause 
of  them,  would  avail  toward  obtaining  relief,  ascertaining  and  estab 
lishing  the  just  rights  of  the  people,  and  restoring  the  public  tran 
quillity  ;  and  we  deeply  lament  that  contrary  modes  of  proceeding 
have  been  pursued,  which  have  involved  the  colonies  in  confusion, 
appear  likely  to  produce  violence  and  bloodshed,  and  threaten  the 
subversion  of  the  constitutional  government,  and  of  that  liberty  of 
conscience  for  the  enjoyment  of  which  our  ancestors  were  induced 
to  encounter  the  manifold  dangers  and  difficulties  of  crossing  the 
seas  and  settling  in  the  wilderness.  We  are,  therefore,  incited,  by 
a  sincere  concern  for  the  peace  and  welfare  of  our  country,  publicly 
to  declare  against  every  usurpation  of  power  and  authority  in 
opposition  to  the  laws  and  government,  and  against  all  combina 
tions,  insurrections,  conspiracies,  and  illegal  assemblies ;  and  as  we 
are  restrained  from  them  by  the  conscientious  discharge  of  our 
duty  to  Almighty  God, '  by  whom  kings  reign  and  princes  decree 
justice,'  we  hope,  through  his  assistance  and  favor,  to  be  enabled  to 
maintain  our  testimony  against  any  requisitions  which  may  be 
made  of  us,  inconsistent  with  our  religious  principles,  and  the 
fidelity  we  owe  to  the  king  and  his  government,  as  by  law  estab 
lished  ;  earnestly  desiring  the  restoration  of  that  harmony  and 
concord  which  have  heretofore  united  the  people  of  these  prov 
inces,  and  been  attended  by  the  Divine  blessing  on  their  labors." 

Such  was  the  loyal  manifesto  put  forth  by  the  Quakers  just  as 
the  old  war  for  independence  was  kindling,  "signed  in  and  on 
behalf  of  the  said  meeting,"  by  James  Pemberton,  "  clerk  at  this 
time,"  and  widely  circulated  throughout  the  continent.*  From  that 
time,  until  the  close  of  the  war,  the  Quakers,  as  a  body,  were  friends 

*  Christopher  Marshall,  in  his  diary  of  that  date,  says  :  "Meetings  daily  amongst  the  Quakers, 
in  order,  if  possible,  to  defeat  the  pacific  proceedings  of  the  continental  congress,  calling  upon  their 
members  not  to  meet  the  county  committees,  but  entirely  to  withdraw  from  them,  under  the  penalty 
of  excommunication ....  This  day  [January  twenty-fourth,  1774],  was  also  a  paper  published, 
called  a  Testimony  of  the  people  called  Quakers,  in  which  is  contained  such  gross  abuse  against  all 
persons  that  oppose  their  fallacious  schemes,  and  stuffed  with  such  false  contradictions,  that  it  will 
be  a  lasting  memento  of  the  truth  of  what  Robert  Walker,  one  of  their  public  preachers,  now  here, 
often  told  them,  and  warned  them  to  take  care,  'because/  says  he,  'the  Lord  is  departed  from  you, 
as  he  did  from  Saul,  and  has  given  you  over  to  your  own  devices.'  "  The  harsh  epithets  of  Mar 
shall  are  not  justified  by  the  words  of  the  "  Testimony." 


460  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  the  king,  though  generally  passive,  so  far  as  public  observation 
could  determine.  Yet  there  were  many  exceptions.  A  large  num 
ber  of  the  Quakers  of  Philadelphia  were  offended  by  this  "  Testi 
mony,"  and  publicly  repudiated  it.  Some  of  them  separated  from 
their  loyal  brethren,  formed  a  separate  meeting,  and  built  for  them 
selves  a  new  place  of  worship  at  the  southwest  corner  of  Fifth  and 
Arch  streets.  Others  so  far  seceded  as  to  break  the  "  Discipline," 
and  formed  themselves  into  a  military  corps,  under  Captain  Hum 
phreys,  which  was  called  The  Quaker  Company.  And  in  the  provin 
cial  convention,  convened,  as  we  have  seen,  at  the  same  time  with 
the  Quaker  meeting,  Thomas  Miffiin,  a  young  member  of  the  sect, 
of  great  energy  and  irrepressible  zeal,  was  earnestly  exhorting  his 
countrymen  to  take  up  arms,  if  necessary. 

From  this  time,  the  Quakers  were  marked  as  decided  loyalists, 
yet  they  seldom  took  any  part  openly  in  the  political  movements 
of  the  day.  In  secret  meetings  and  through  their  "testimonies," 
they  continually  "gave  aid  and  comfort  to  the  enemy;"  and  in 
their  yearly  meetings,  according  to  common  report  and  the  authority 
of  a  contemporary  writer,*  they  matured  schemes  against  the 
patriots.  To  such  an  extent  was  their  secret  influence  exerted, 
that  Congress,  in  1777,  thought  it  proper  to  recommend  the  execu 
tives  of  the  several  states,  wherein  these  people  resided,  to  keep  a 
watch  upon  their  movements.  For  this  suspicion  and  vigilance 
there  seemed  to  be  ample  excuse.  When,  in  December,  1776,  the 
British  army,  before  which  Washington  had  fled  across  the  Jerseys, 
was  menacing  Philadelphia,  a  "  testimony"  of  the  Quakers,  seditious 
in  its  character,  signed  by  John  Pemberton,  "in  behalf  of  the 
meeting  of  sufferings,  held  at  Philadelphia,  for  Pennsylvania  and 
New  Jersey,  the  twenty-sixth  of  twelfth  month,"  was  published  and 
circulated  throughout  the  society  in  the  different  states.  At  about 
the  same  time  Congress  was  placed  in  possession  of  many  papers 
and  records  of  the  yearly  meetings  of  the  Quakers,  by  the  defeat 
and  capture  of  some  loyalists  on  Staten  Island,  opposite  Perth 

*  See  extract  from  Samuel  Wharton's  manuscript,  quoted  by  Watson  in  his  Annals  of  Phila 
delphia,  i.,  506. 


jE-r.  43.]  ORDERS  TO  ARREST  QUAKERS.  4G1 

Amboy.  These  gave  such  positive  evidence  of  the  disaffection  of 
the  great  body  of  them,  that  quite  a  large  number  of  the  leading 
members  of  the  society  in  Philadelphia,  together  with  the  Honor 
able  John  Penn  (late  governor  of  the  province)  and  chief-justice 
Chew,  were  banished  to  Fredericksburg,  in  Virginia.* 

In  the  winter  of  1778,  while  the  American  army  was  suffering  at 
Valley  Forge,  some  twenty  miles  from  Philadelphia,  Washington 
became  convinced  that  the  Quakers  of  the  surrounding  country, 
were  acting  as  spies,  in  conveying  intelligence  of  the  condition  of 
his  camp,  and  other  facts,  to  the  British  commander  in  the  city ; 
and  also  that  they  made  their  religious  meetings  there  occasions  for 
political  deliberations,  and  the  arrangement  of  seditious  plans.  Ac 
cordingly,  on  the  twentieth  of  March,  he  issued  the  following  order 
to  General  John  Lacy,  an  active  officer  of  the  Pennsylvania  militia : 
"  Sunday  next  being  the  time  on  which  the  Quakers  hold  one  of 
their  general  meetings,  a  number  of  that  society  will  probably  be 
attempting  to  go  into  Philadelphia.  This  is  an  intercourse  that  we 
should  by  all  means  endeavor  to  interrupt,  as  the  plans  settled  at 
these  meetings  are  of  the  most  pernicious  tendency.  I  would, 
therefore,  have  you  dispose  of  your  parties  in  such  manner  as  will 
most  probably  fall  in  with  these  people,  and  if  they  should,  and 
any  of  them  should  be  mounted  upon  horses  fit  for  draught  or  the 
service  of  light  dragoons,  I  desire  they  may  be  taken  from  them, 
and  sent  over  to  the  quartermaster-general.  Any  such  are  not  to 
be  considered  as  the  property  of  the  parties  who  may  seize  them, 
as  in  other  cases.  Communicate  the  above  orders  to  any  of  the 
officers  who  may  command  scouting  parties  on  your  side  of  the 
Schuylkill."  To  this  General  Lacy  promptly  responded,  by  ordering 
his  horsemen  to  arrest  all  Quakers  on  their  way  toward  Philadel 
phia,  and  "  if  they  refused  to  stop,  when  hailed,  to  fire  into  them, 
and  leave  their  bodies  lying  in  the  road."f 

These  orders  had  the  desired  effect,  yet  the  secret  agency  of  the 

*  Among  these  leaders,  who  were  banished,  were  James,  John,  and  Israel  Pemberton,  Joshua 
Fisher,  Abel  James,  Henry  Drinker,  John  James,  Samuel  Pleasants,  Thomas  Wharton,  senior, 
Thomas  Fisher,  and  Samuel  Fisher. 

t  Niles's  Principles  and  Acts  of  the  Revolution,  334. 


462  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

disaffected  members  of  the  sect  in  the  city  continued  to  be  potent. 
Two  of  the  chief  of  these  offenders — James  Eoberts  and  Abraham 
Carlisle  —  who  were  known  as  the  active  enemies  of  the  patriots, 
were  arrested  a  few  months  later,  when  the  Americans  held  posses 
sion  of  Philadelphia,  and  were  hanged  as  spies  and  traitors,  in 
November  of  that  year.  It  was  clearly  proven  that  they  had  been 
employed  by  Joseph  Galloway  and  other  loyalists,  as  detectors  of 
foes  to  the  government;  that  Carlisle,  under  the  meek  garb  and 
demeanor  of  the  Quaker,  was  a  Torquemada,  exercising  the  func 
tions  of  an  inquisitor-general,  by  watching  at  the  entrance  to  the 
city  and  pointing  out  obnoxious  persons  coming  from  the  country, 
wrho  were  arrested  and  cast  into  prison  on  his  bare  suggestion ;  and 
that  both  Roberts  and  Carlisle,  who  would  not  bear  arms  for  the 
wealth  of  the  Indies,  had  acted  as  guides  to  a  British  detachment, 
sent  out  from  Philadelphia  by  General  Howe,  to  fall  upon  and  mas 
sacre  a  corps  of  Americans,  lying  in  a  wood  near  the  road  to  Frank- 
ford  !  These  facts,  fully  attested  by  competent  witnesses,  justified 
the  execution  of  these  men,  according  to  the  implacable  rules  of 
war,  and  parried  the  keen  shafts  of  bitter  vituperation  with  which 
the  patriots  were  assailed  by  the  loyalists,  on  account  of  that  act. 

Such,  in  brief,  are  some  of  the  most  prominent  facts  in  the  history 
of  the  opposition  of  the  Quakers  to  the  war  for  independence  —  an 
opposition  based  primarily  upon  their  great  distinctive  doctrine  of 
non-resistance,  and  their  love  of  peace.  They  saw,  in  the  increasing 
turmoils  of  politics,  much  to  disturb  their  tranquillity ;  and  when 
they  perceived  the  torch  of  war  actually  lighting  up  the  whole 
country  with  its  lurid  glare,  they  felt  it  to  be  their  duty  to  do  all  in 
their  power  to  quench  the  devastating  flame.  Their  love  of  peace 
and  quiet  made  them  habitually  submissive  to  all  laws  which  did 
not  interfere  with  the  rights  of  conscience,  and  they  were  conse 
quently  passive  loyalists.  When,  therefore,  they  heard  words  of 
defiance  uttered  against  the  imperial  government,  they  were  dis 
turbed  ;  and  when  independence,  which  implied  a  bloody  conflict, 
was  preached,  they  were  amazed.  No  doubt  the  great  body  of  the 
Quakers,  who  opposed  the  war,  did  so  pursuant  to  the  dictates  of  a 


T£T.  43.]  INFLUENCE  OF  RELIGIOUS  SECTS.  463 

lively  conscience,  and  therefore  we  should  not  withhold  our  respect 
for  them.  There  were  very  few  Roberts  and  Carlisles  among  them ; 
and  the  thousands  who  composed  that  important  and  widely  influ 
ential  opposition  —  an  opposition  which  bore  heavily  upon  Congress 
in  its  earlier  sessions  in  Philadelphia*  —  ought  not  to  suffer  reproach 
as  the  real  enemies  of  freedom,  because  of  the  sins  of  these  re 
creant  ones. 

Other  religious  sects  had  much  influence  in  shaping  the  course 
of  political  events  in  various  colonies,  at  this  crisis.  In  New  Eng 
land,  the  congregational  ministers,  a  numerous  and  very  influential 
class,  headed  by  Chauncey  and  Cooper,  of  Boston,  were  unani 
mously  opposed  to  the  rule  of  Great  Britain,  and  their  flocks 
sympathized  with  them,  for  it  was  a  traditionary  sentiment.  Their 
zeal  in  the  cause  of  civil  liberty  was  heightened  by  the  recent 
revival  of  a  long-cherished  scheme  for  the  introduction  of  episco 
pacy  into  America,  to  which  we  have  alluded ;  and  the  people  of 
New  England  presented  almost  a  solid  phalanx  of  opposition  to 
ministerial  measures.  In  the  middle  provinces,  and  in  some  por 
tions  of  the  southern  colonies,  the  presbyterians,  who  derived  their 
origin  from  the  dissenting  sections  of  the  Scottish  church,  were 
almost  all  zealous  whigs ;  but  the  Scotch  Highlanders,  in  New  York, 
North  Carolina,  and  Georgia,  who  were  generally  very  ignorant, 
and  the  Scotch  traders  and  merchants,  who  were  numerous  at  the 
South,  were  tories,  as  the  loyalists  were  called,  from  the  beginning, 
and  remained  so. 

The  episcopal  clergy,  especially  in  the  middle  and  northern  prov- 

*  John  Dickinson,  of  Pennsylvania,  a  firm  patriot  throughout  the  war,  was  steadily  opposed  to 
independence,  and  spoke  and  acted  against  it.  John  Adams,  in  his  autobiography,  when  writing 
about  the  proceedings  in  Congress  on  the  subject  of  independence,  early  in  the  summer  of  1776, 
says :  "  Mr.  Charles  Thomson,  who  was  then  rather  inclined  to  our  side  of  the  question,  told  me 
that  the  Quakers  had  intimidated  Mr.  Dickinson's  mother  and  his  wife,  who  were  continually  dis 
tressing  him  with  their  remonstrances.  His  mother  said  to  him,  'Johnny,  you  will  be  hanged;  your 
estates  will  be  forfeited  and  confiscated  ;  you  will  leaye  your  excellent  wife  a  widow,  and  your  charm 
ing  children  orphans,  beggars,  and  infamous/  From  my  soul  I  pitied  Mr.  Dickinson.  I  made  his 
case  my  own.  If  my  mother  and  my  wife  had  expressed  such  sentiments  to  me,  I  was  certain  that 
if  they  did  not  wholly  unman  me,  and  make  me  an  apostate,  they  would  make  me  the  most  misera 
ble  man  alive."  Thomas  Willing  and  Charles  Humphreys,  Pennsylvania  delegates  in  the  conti 
nental  Congress,  in  1776,  voted  against  independence.  They  were,  doubtless,  influenced  in  their 
decision  by  the  Quakers,  with  whom  they  were  intimately  connected. 


464  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

inces,  and  a  large  portion  of  their  parishioners,  were  generally  loyal, 
while  those  in  Virginia  and  South  Carolina,  who  had  not  partici 
pated  in  the  controversy  respecting  the  establishment  of  episcopacy 
in  the  colonies,  were  very  little  governed  by  their  religious  associa 
tions.  In  New  York,  the  influence  of  the  episcopalians  was  power 
ful  against  the  patriots,  in  and  out  of  the  assembly ;  and  that  body 
was  very  tardy  in  yielding  its  acquiescence  in  the  scheme  of  the 
American  association,  and  in  appointing  delegates  to  a  new  Con 
gress.  The  Roman  catholics,  who  were  more  numerous  in  Maryland 
than  in  any  other  colony,  were  generally  the  friends  of  liberty ;  and 
that  province  was  among  the  earliest  to  approve  the  acts  of  the 
continental  Congress.  The  descendants  of  the  Huguenot  settlers 
in  New  York  and  South  Carolina,  appeared  to  have  an  instinctive 
love  of  freedom,  for  they  w^ere  almost  unanimously  in  favor  of  the 
association,  and  of  armed  resistance,  if  necessary. 

In  all  the  colonies,  at  the  beginning  of  1775,  measures  were 
either  consummated  or  were  in  progress,  to  enforce  the  American 
association,  by  the  appointment  of  committees  of  inspection ;  and 
provincial  congresses,  assuming  the  functions  of  regular  civil  gov 
ernment,  soon  began  to  germinate,  in  defiance  of  the  menaces  of 
royal  representatives,  and  the  preparations  in  Parliament  to  crush 
the  rising  rebellion. 

At  the  dawn  of  1775,  the  colonies  were  on  the  verge  of  civil 
war.  The  conviction  of  that  fact  was  sensibly  felt  in  both  hemi 
spheres,  and  the  friends  of  freedom  everywhere  looked  on  with 
intense  anxiety,  and  gave  cheerful  words  of  encouragement.  With 
the  later  days  of  the  waning  year,  the  voice  of  Josiah  Quincy — 
the  dying  Josiah  Quincy* — uttered  as  if  from  the  margin  of  the 

*  Josiah  Quincy  was  born  in  Boston,  on  the  twenty-third  of  February,  1744.  As  a  student  he 
was  remarkably  persevering.  He  graduated  with  honor  at  Harvard  in  1763.  He  pursued  legal 
studies  under  the  celebrated  Oxenbridge  Thacher,  of  Boston.  The  circumstances  of  the  times 
turned  his  thoughts  to  political  topics,  and  he  took  sides  with  Otis,  Adams,  and  others,  against  the 
aggressive  policy  of  Britain.  As  early  as  1768,  he  used  this  bold  language  :  "Did  the  blood  of  the 
ancient  Britons  swell  our  veins,  did  the  spirit  of  our  forefathers  inhabit  our  breasts,  should  we  hesi 
tate  a  moment  in  preferring  death  to  a  miserable  existence  in  bondage  ?"  In  1770  he  declared,  "I 
wish  to  see  my  countrymen  break  off — off  for  ever!  all  social  intercourse  with  those  whose  com 
merce  contaminates,  whose  luxuries  poison,  whose  avarice  is  insatiable,  and  whose  unnatural  oppres 
sions  are  not  to  be  borne."  Mr.  Quincy  was  associated  with  John  Adams  in  the  defence  of  the 
perpetrators  of  the  "  Boston  Massacre,"  in  1770,  and  did  not,  by  that  defense,  alienate  the  good 


jE-r.  13.]  THE  WORDS  OF  QUINCY.  4G5 

grave  beyond  the  Atlantic,  whither  he  had  gone  to  serve  his  coun 
try,  with  feeble  pulse  but  giant  heart  and  brain,  warbled  hymns  to 
liberty  in  solemn  prose,  as  exquisite  in  cadence  as  the  music  of  the 
expiring  swan,  to  cheer  and  soothe  his  countrymen ;  or  with  the 
vehemence  of  a  S  ten  tor  sounded  the  trumpet-notes  anew,  with 
which  he  had  already,  upon  old  Shawmut,  aroused  his  countrymen.* 
"  Let  me  tell  you,"  he  wrote  from  London  in  December ;  "  let  me 
tell  you  one  very  serious  truth,  in  which  we  are  all  agreed — your 
countrymen  must  seal  their  cause  with  their  blood.  You  know  how  often 
and  how  long  ago,  I  said  this.  I  see  every  day  more  and  more 
reason  to  confirm  my  opinion.  Every  day  I  find  characters  digni 
fied  by  science,  rank,  and  station,  of  the  same  sentiment....  Surely 
my  countrymen  will  recollect  the  words  I  held  to  them  this  time 
twelve  months.  Hundreds,  I  believe,  will  call  these  words,  and 
many  more  of  the  same  import,  to  remembrance.  Hundreds,  who 
heretofore  doubted,  are  long  ere  this  convinced  I  was  right.  The 
popular  sentiments  of  the  day  prevailed;  they  advanced  with 

opinion  of  the  people.  In  February,  1771,  he  was  obliged  to  go  to  the  south  on  account  of  a  pulmo 
nary  complaint.  At  Charleston  he  formed  an  acquaintance  with  Pinckney,  Rutledge,  and  other  patri 
ots,  and,  returning  by  land,  conferred  with  other  leading  whigs  in  the  several  colonies.  In  the  autumn 
of  1773,  he  took  a  very  active  part  in  the  public  meetings  and  other  proceedings  in  Boston,  which 
resulted  in  the  destruction  of  tea  in  the  harbor  of  that  city,  in  December.  Continued  ill  health,  and 
a  desire  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  English  statesmen,  induced  him  to  make  a  voyage  to  Eng 
land  in  1774,  where  he  had  personal  interviews  with  most  of  the  leading  men.  He  asserts  that, 
while  there,  Colonel  Barre,  who  had  travelled  in  America,  assured  him  that  such  was  the  ignorance 
of  the  English  people,  two  thirds  of  them  thought  the  Americans  were  all  negroes  !  Becoming  fully 
acquainted  with  the  feelings  and  intentions  of  the  king  and  his  ministers,  and  hopeless  of  reconcilia 
tion,  Mr.  Quincy  determined  to  return  and  arouse  his  countrymen  to  action.  He  embarked  for 
Boston,  with  declining  health,  in  March,  and  died  when  the  vessel  was  in  sight  of  land,  on  the 
twenty-sixth  of  April,  1775,  aged  thirty-one  years. 

*  His  words  quoted  below,  were  uttered  before  an  immense  concourse  of  people,  assembled  in 
the  old  South  meeting-house,  and  its  vicinity,  in  Boston,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  sixteenth  of 
December,  1773,  a  few  hours  before  the  tea  was  destroyed  in  the  harbor.  Mr.  Quincy  was  the  prin 
cipal  speaker  on  that  occasion.  "It  is  not,  Mr.  Moderator,"  he  said,  "the  spirit  that  vapors  within 
these  walls  that  must  stand  us  in  stead.  The  exertions  of  this  day  will  call  forth  events  which  will 
nmke  a  very  different  spirit  necessary  for  our  salvation.  Look  to  the  end.  Whoever  supposes  that 
shouts  and  hosannas  will  terminate  the  trials  of  the  day,  entertains  a  childish  fancy.  We  must  be 
grossly  ignorant  of  the  importance  and  value  of  the  prize  for  which  we  contend  ;  we  must  be  equally 
ignorant  of  the  powers  of  those  who  have  combined  against  us  ;  we  must  be  blind  to  that  malice, 
inveteracy,  and  insatiable  revenge,  which  actuate  our  enemies,  public  and  private,  abroad  and  in  our 
bosom,  to  hope  we  shall  end  this  controversy  without  the  sharpest  —  the  sharpest  conflicts ;  to  flatter 
ourselves  that  popular  resolves,  popular  harangues,  popular  acclamations,  and  popular  vapor,  will 
vanquish  our  foes.  Let  us  consider  the  issue.  Let  us  look  to  the  end.  Let  us  weigh  and  consider 
before  we  advance  to  those  measures  which  must  bring  on  the  most  trying  and  terrible  struggle  this 
country  ever  saw." 

80 


466  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

"resolutions"  to  hazard  and  abide  the  consequences.  They  must 
now  stand  the  issue  —  they  must  preserve  a  consistency  of  charac 
ter —  THEY  MUST  NOT  DELAY — they  must  —  -  or  be  trodden  into  the 
vilest  vassalage,  the  scorn,  the  spurn  of  their  enemies,  a  byword  of 
infamy  among  all  men." 

"  In  the  sight  of  God,  and  of.  all  just  men,"  he  continued,  "  the 
cause  is  good.  We  have  the  wishes  of  the  wise  and  humane,  we 
have  the  prayers  of  the  pious,  and  the  universal  benison  of  all  who 
seek  to  God  for  direction,  aid,  and  blessing.  I  own  I  feel  for  the 
miseries  of  my  country ;  I  own  I  feel  much  desire  for  the  happiness 
of  my  brethren  in  trouble  ;  but  why  should  I  disguise,  I  feel,  ineffa 
bly,  for  the  honor — the  honor,  I  repeat  it — the  honor  of  my  coun 
try.  Need  I  explain  myself  further  ?  When  you  shall  act  agree 
ably  to  your  past  ostentations ;  when  you  have  shown  that  you  are, 
what  Englishmen  once  were,  whether  successful  or  not,  your  foes 
will  diminish,  your  friends  amazingly  increase,  and  you  will  be 
happy  in  the  peaceful  enjoyment  of  your  inheritance ;  or,  at  least, 
your  enemies  will,  in  some  measure,  stay  their  intemperate  fury 
from  a  reverence  of  your  virtue,  and  a  fear  of  reanimating  your 
courage.  But  if  in  the  trial  you  prove,  as  your  enemies  say,  arrant 
poltroons  and  cowards,  how  ineffably  contemptible  will  you  appear ; 
how  wantonly  and  superlatively  will  you  be  abused  and  insulted  by 
your  triumphing  oppressors  !"* 

Two  days  afterward,  when  writing  of  Lord  North's  apology  for 
his  expression,  "  I  will  have  America  at  my  feet,"  and  the  proba 
bility  of  a  suspension  of  the  obnoxious  acts  of  Parliament,  he  uttered 
words  of  warning,  which  his  countrymen,  often  deceived,,  were 
quick  to  heed.  "  Be  the  event  as  it  may,"  he  said,  "  continue  true 
to  yourselves,  and  the  day  is  your  own.  If  they  only  suspend,  do 
not,  for  heaven's  sake,  think  of  relaxing  your  agreements  while 
you  are  treating.  Beware  of  the  arts  of  negotiation.  The  ministry 
are  adepts  in  them ;  at  least  they  are  skilled  in  the  science  of 
corruption.  There  is  no  doubt  but  the  ministry  sent  large  sums 
to  New  York,  in  order  to  bribe  the  continental  delegates.  It  was 

*  Memoir  of  Josiah  Quincy,  Jr.,  266. 


Mr.  43.]  ENCOURAGING  SENTIMENTS.  467 

openly  avowed  and  vindicated,  and  great  boast  was  made  of  min 
isterial  success.  It  was  said  that  they  had  effected  a  disunion  which 
would  be  fatal  to  the  cause  of  all  America.  You  can  not  well 
imagine  the  chagrin  with  which  the  ministry  received  the  result  of 
that  glorious  body.  They  are  viewed  as  the  northern  constellation 
of  glorious  worthies,  illuminating  and  warning  the  new  world.  I 
feel  a  pride  in  being  an  American."* 

A  little  later,  he  wrote :  "  How  elevated  must  be  feelings  of  an 
American,  who  sees  his  countrymen  distinguish  themselves  as  wise 
and  virtuous,  calm  and  brave ;  rising  in  the  estimation  of  all  man 
kind,  as  the  illustrious  remnant  of  the  sons  of  freedom.  You  see, 
my  worthy  friend,  that  the  glitter  of  a  court  hath  not  yet  fascinated 
me  with  its  splendor,  nor  the  corruption  of  Britain  made  me  an 
apostate  from  the  cause  of  my  country.  The  pageantry  I  see  here 
makes  me  every  day  more  attached  to  the  simplicity  of  my  native 
soil ;  and  while  I  hourly  survey  the  extended  miseries  of  enormous 
wealth  and  power,  I  warm  with  more  enthusiastic  fervor  in  the 
cause  of  freedom  and  my  country ;  and  in  what  cause  ought  the 
pulse  of  man  to  beat  with  a  more  full  and  genial  current  ?"•(• 

Other  Americans  in  England,  with  less  glowing  enthusiasm,  but 
equal  zeal  and  firmness,  sent  words — strong,  electrifying,  anima 
ting  words  —  to  their  countrymen,  commending  them  for  their 
wisdom  and  prudence,  and  exhorting  them  to  be  vigilant,  persistent, 
and  unyielding. 

*  Memoir  of  Josiah  Quincy,  Jr.,  page  272.  t  Ibid.,  page  278. 


463  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER    XLIII. 

MEETING  OF  MASSACHUSETTS  ASSEMBLY PROVINCIAL  CONGRESS  FORMED PREP 
ARATIONS    FOR    WAR ROYAL    POWER    VIRTUALLY    ABOLISHED THE    ARMY    OF 

MINUTE-MEN PREPARATIONS    ELSEWHERE INDEPENDENT  COMPANIES    IN    VIR 
GINIA THE    COM3IAND  OFFERED    TO  WASHINGTON LEE    AND    GATES INDIAN 

WAR  ON  THE  FRONTIER DUNMORE  IN  THE  FIELD BATTLE  AT  POINT  PLEASANT 

TREATY    WITH    THE     INDIANS LOGAN'S     SPEECH DUNMORF/S     WICKEDNESS 

SUSPECTED DISSATISFACTION     OF    THE     VIRGINIANS SECOND    VIRGINIA     CON 
VENTION WASHINGTON     A     MEMBER THE     PROCEEDINGS PATRICK     HENRY'S 

RESOLUTIONS    AND    SPEECH RICHARD    HENRY    LEE THE    RESULT WASHING 
TON'S  LETTER  TO  HIS  BROTHER. 

MASSACHUSETTS,  upon  whom  the  arm  of  ministerial  vengeance  was 
most  heavily  laid,  took  the  earliest  and  boldest  steps  in  the  direction 
of  absolute  rebellion  and  revolution.  Gage  had  summoned  the 
house  of  representatives  of  that  province,  to  assemble  at  Salem  on 
the  fifth  of  October.  The  course  of  events  in  that  colony,  and  at 
Philadelphia,  alarmed  him,  and  he  thought  it  expedient  to  issue  a 
proclamation  countermanding  that  order.  He  did  so?  and  refused 
to  call  the  assembly  together.  The  people  denied  his  right  to  thus 
interfere  with  the  course  of  legislation,  and  most  of  the  members 
elect,  to  the  number  of  ninety,  were  at  Salem  on  the  appointed 
day.  Of  course  Gage  was  not  there  to  meet  them ;  and  as  no 
official  appeared  to  administer  the  oaths,  they  resolved  themselves 
into  a  provincial  Congress,  adjourned  to  Concord,  about  eighteen 
miles  from  Boston,  and  there  organized  by  the  appointment  of  the 
wealthy  and  influential  John  Hancock  their  president,  and  Benjamin 
Lincoln,  a  middle-aged  farmer  of  Hingham,  and  afterward  an  emi 
nent  general  of  the  Revolution,  their  secretary.  A  large  committee, 
appointed  to  consider  the  state  of  the  province,  prepared  an  address 
to  Gage,  in  which  they  asserted  the  loyalty  of  the  people  of  Massa- 


/ET.  43.]  NEW  ENGLAND  ARMING.  460 

chusetts,  their  attachment  to  Great  Britain,  and  their  love  of  peace 
and  good  order-  but  complained  of  the  acts  of  Parliament  as  tend 
ing  to  enslave  the  Americans,  and  remonstrated  with  the  governor 
in  such  a  manner,  as  virtually  to  call  him  to  account  for  his  conduct 
in  fortifying  Boston  Neck,  and  making  other  hostile  demonstrations. 
This  address  was  adopted  by  the  Congress,  and  that  body  then 
adjourned  to  Cambridge,  where  they  appointed  a  committee  to 
carry  the  document  to  Governor  Gage.  Influenced  by  his  fears, 
that  functionary  so  far  recognised  the  legality  of  the  Congress,  as 
to  enter  into  explanations,  and  disavowals  of  unfriendly  intentions. 
He  declared  that  his  measures  were  only  defensive  and  precaution 
ary  ;  that  Parliament  had  no  desire  to  enslave  the  Americans ;  and 
he  begged  them  to  consider  how  revolutionary  were  their  present 
proceedings,  and  urged  them  to  desist. 

The  provincial  Congress  would  not  listen  to  the  soft  and  deceptive 
words  of  the  governor,  but  went  forward  in  preparations  for  the 
inevitable  storm.  They  appointed  a  committee  of  safety,  with 
John  Hancock  at  its  head,  delegating  to  it  general  executive  powers, 
and  the  right  of  calling  out  the  militia  of  the  province.  Another 
committee  was  appointed,  to  provide  arms,  ammunition,  and  stores, 
for  which  purpose  upward  of  sixty  thousand  dollars  were  appro 
priated.  Provision  was  also  made  for  the  general  arming  of  the 
minute-men  of  the  province ;  and  Jedediah  Preble,  an  old  militia 
officer  of  Falinouth,  Artemas  Ward,  a  judge  of  the  Worcester 
county  court  of  common  pleas,  and  Seth  Pomeroy,  who  was  at  the 
head  of  a  regiment  in  the  battle  at  Lake  George,  in  1755,  were 
commissioned  as  generals.  Henry  Gardner  was  chosen  treasurer 
of  the  colony,  with  the  title  of  receiver-general;  and  constables 
and  tax-collectors  were  ordered  to  place  in  his  hands  alone,  all 
public  moneys  that  they  might  collect.  These  proceedings  of  the 
Congress  were  generally  approved  by  the  people  throughout  the 
province.  Ammunition  and  stores  were  speedily  collected  at  Con 
cord,  Woburn,  and  other  places.  Mills  were  erected  for  making 
gunpowder ;  manufactories  of  arms  were  established,  and  great 
encouragement  was  given  to  the  production  of  saltpetre. 


470  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Boyal  power,  exept  what  resided  in  the  military  force  in  Boston, 
was  now  virtually  at  an  end  in  Massachusetts.  Gage  denounced 
the  proceedings  of  the  Congress,  but  no  attention  was  paid  to  his 
proclamation;  and  at  a  session  of  that  body  toward  the  close  of 
November,  it  was  voted  to  enrol  twelve  thousand  minute-men.  An 
invitation  was  sent  to  other  New  England  provinces  to  follow  the 
example.  It  was  quickly  responded  to,  and  the  army  of  twelve 
thousand  was  soon  increased  to  twenty  thousand,  with  John  Thomas, 
of  Plymouth,  who  had  commanded  a  regiment  in  the  French  war, 
and  William  Heath,  a  Eoxbury  farmer,  commissioned  as  additional 
generals. 

This  army,  strong,  determined,  generous,  and  panting  for  action, 
was  invisible  to  the  superficial  observer.  It  was  not  seen  in 
the  camp,  the  field,  nor  the  garrison.  No  drum  was  heard  calling 
it  to  action;  no  trumpet  was  sounded  for  battle.  It  was  like 
electricity,  harmless  when  latent,  but  terrible  when  aroused.  It 
was  all  over  the  land.  It  was  at  the  plough,  in  the  workshop,  and 
in  the  counting-room.  Almost  every  household  was  its  headquar 
ters  and  every  roof  its  tent.  It  bivouacked  in  every  chamber; 
and  mothers,  sisters,  wives,  and  sweethearts,  made  cartridges  for  its 
muskets,  and  supplied  its  commissariat.  It  was  the  old  story  of 
Cadmus  repeated  in  modern  history.  British  oppression  had  sown 
dragon's  teeth  all  over  the  land,  and  a  harvest  of  armed  men  were 
ready  to  spring  up,  but  not  to  destroy  each  other 

The  flame  of  rebellion  that  burst  out  in  New  England  spread 
southward.  In  the  middle  provinces,  the  people  were  seen  every 
where,  in  the  practice  of  military  discipline.  In  almost  every 
village  and  hamlet,  in  quiet  valleys  and  upon  the  breezy  hills,  the 
roll  of  the  drums  was  heard.  Virginia,  with  its  quick  ear,  had 
early  caught  the  sound  of  martial  preparations ;  and  when  Wash 
ington  returned  to  Mount  Vernon,  he  found  the  independent  com 
panies  throughout  the  province  waiting  for  the  voice  of  his  experi 
ence  to  teach  them  how  to  prepare  for  the  conflict.  Many  of  them 
had  been  on  the  frontiers  during  the  summer  and  autumn,  engaged 
in  war  with  the  Indians  of  the  Ohio  country.  Now,  perceiving  that 


JEx.  43.]  MILITARY  MOVEMENTS.  471 

a  broader  and  holier  field  of  action  was  opening  for  the  American 
soldier  who  loved  his  country  as  his  birthright,  they  turned  toward 
Washington,  the  trusted  and  beloved  as  a  hero,  patriot,  and  sage, 
for  advice  and  discipline. 

Washington  coveted  the  pleasures  of  rural  pursuits,  and  the 
quiet  of  domestic  life,  after  his  long  absence  at  Philadelphia,  but- 
urgent  calls  to  public  duty  would  not  allow  him  to  enjoy  that  boon 
undisturbed.  A  few  days  after  his  arrival  the  Independent  Company 
of  Cadets  of  Prince  William  county,  a  well-appointed  corps,  whose 
significant  motto  wras,  Aid  liber  ant  mittus,  solicited  him  to  take  com 
mand  of  them  as  a  field-officer.*  Other  companies  offered  him  the 
same  honor;  and  throughout  the  province,  when  the  people  felt 
that  war  with  the  mother-country  was  inevitable,  they  turned,  as 
with  one  heart  and  one  mind,  to  Washington  as  the  destined  leader 
of  the  Virginia  battalions  in  the  army  of  freemen.  He  yielded  to 
these  solicitations,  and  reviewed  the  troops  which  assembled  at 
various  places ;  and  much  of  the  winter  and  spring  of  1774— '75, 
was  spent  by  him  in  this  important  service.  During  that  time, 
Charles  Lee  and  Horatio  Gates,  English  officers  of  distinction,  were 
frequently  guests  at  Mount  Yernon,  and  accompanied  Washington 
in  these  military  excursions.  There,  too,  his  old  companions-in 
arms,  Hugh  Mercer,  of  Fredericksburg,  and  Doctor  James  Craik, 
his  family  physician,  were  frequently  seen,  in  consultation  on  public 
affairs ;  and  Mount  Vernon  became  the  headquarters  of  military 
councils  for  the  leaders  of  the  arming  people. 

The  war  in  the  west,  carried  on  by  the  Virginians,  was  com 
menced  by  the  Indians,  who  were  incited  to  hostilities  by  some 
white  scoundrels,  eager  to  gain  some  personal  advantage  in  the 
contest.  War  against  the  savages  was  encouraged  by  Governor 
Dun  more ;  and  the  training  of  the  independent  companies  which 
had  occurred  in  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1774,  wras  warmly 

*  At  a  meeting  of  the  cadets  (of  whom  William  Grayson,  afterward  a  member  of  the  Federal 
Congress,  was  captain),  held  on  the  eleventh  of  November,  1774,  it  was  Resolved,  unanimously, 
That  Thomas  Blackburn,  llichard  Graham,  and  Philip  Richard  Francis  Lee,  gentlemen,  do  waif  on 
Colonel  George  Washington,  and  request  him  to  take  the  command  of  this  company,  as  their  field- 
officer,  and  that  he  will  be  pleased  to  direct  the  fashion  of  their  uniform  ;  and  that  they  also  acquaint 
him  with  the  motto  of  their  company,  which  is  to  be  fixed  on  their  colors." 


472  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY. 

commended  by  him.  Little  did  he  think  that  such  discipline  was 
preparing  the  people  to  act  efficiently  against  himself  and  his  royal 
master,  a  few  months  later. 

The  Indians  might  have  been  pacified  by  judicious  management, 
but  Dunmore  and  his  agents  appeared  bent  on  war.  Doctor  Con 
nolly,  whom  the  governor  had  appointed  magistrate  of  Augusta 
county,  on  the  frontier,  was  among  the  most  active  in  keeping  the 
flame  alive.  In  the  spring  of  1774,  he  informed  Colonel  Cresap,  a 
leader  among  the  pioneers,  that  war  was  inevitable.  Cresap  assem 
bled  the  people  late  in  April,  and  made  a  solemn  declaration  of 
hostilities.  Some  skirmishes  ensued,  much  bad  feeling  was  engen 
dered,  and  a  general  Indian  war  was  apprehended. 

A  little  later  there  was  a  scene  of  blood  at  the  cabin  of  a  man 
who  sold  rum,  on  the  bank  of  the  Ohio  opposite  the  dwelling  of 
Logan,  a  celebrated  Mingo  chief,  which  heightened  the  increasing 
exasperation  of  the  Indians.  Some  of  Logan's  people,  in  his 
absence,  determined  to  go  over  and  treacherously  murder  the 
family  of  the  rumseller,  in  revenge  for  the  shooting  of  two  Indians 
a  little  while  before.  The  white  people  were  forewarned,  and  were 
consequently  forearmed.  The  Indians  went  over,  drank  freely, 
became  intoxicated,  and  were  all  slain.  Logan's  mother,  brother, 
and  sister,  were  among  the  fallen.  The  vengeance  of  the  chief 
was  aroused,  and  during  nearly  all  of  that  summer  Logan  was  out 
upon  the  war-path. 

Early  in  August  Dunmore  took  the  field  in  person,  with  a  force 
of  three  thousand  men.  The  chief  rendezvous  of  the  Indians  was 
then  on  the  Sciota,  in  the  present  Pickaway  county,  Ohio.  The 
Virginians  marched  in  two  divisions,  one  under  Colonel  Andrew 
Lewis,  and  the  other  was  led  by  Dunmore  himself.  Lewis's  division 
struck  the  Great  Kanawha  and  followed  that  stream  to  the  Ohio  at 
Point  Pleasant ;  the  other  passed  through  the  mountains  of  the 
Potomac  gap,  and  reached  the  Ohio  above  Wheeling.  It  was  now 
October,  and  at  Point  Pleasant,  Lewis  halted  to  be  joined  by  Dun- 
more,  and  there  he  cast  up  intrenchments.  Dunmore  came  not, 
but  the  foe  did,  stealthily  and  swiftly  from  the  Pickaway  plains,  a 


yEr.  43.]  WAR  WITH  THE  INDIANS.  473 

thousand  strong,  under  the  great  chief  Cornstalk.  Within  an  hour 
after  the  Virginia  scouts  discovered  the  van  of  the  savages,  a  terri 
ble  battle  was  in  progress.  For  hours  the  combatants  swayed  to 
and  fro,  and  the  voice  of  the  gigantic  Cornstalk  was  constantly 
heard  crying,  "  Be  strong !  be  strong !"  Nistfit  came  on.  Half  of 

J  O'  O  O  O 

the  Virginia  officers  and  more  than  fifty  privates  were  slain.  In 
the  darkness  the  Indians,  who  had  suffered  far  greater  loss,  fled. 

On  the  following  day  a  summons  from  Dunmore  called  Lewis 
and  his  broken  army  away  toward  the  Shawnee  towns  on  the 
Sciota.  They  pressed  forward  and  joined  the  governor  in  time 
and  in  numbers  to  have  struck  an  exterminating  blow.  But  Dun- 
more,  so  ready  for  war  in  the  spring,  was  now  more  ready  for 
peace.  The  Indians,  perceiving  the  destruction  of  their  towns  to 
be  inevitable,  had  sent  an  infamous  white  man,  the  companion  of 
the  notorious  Girty  and  M'Kee,  white  savages  on  the  frontier,  with 
a  flag  of  truce  to  Dunmore,  and  he  had  consented  to  treat.  The 
Virginians,  full  five-and-twenty  hundred  strong,  were  eager  to  crush 
the  foe  that  had  so  long  disturbed  the  peace  of  the  province,  and 
they  almost  mutinied  when  the  governor  opened  the  treaty  council. 

Cornstalk  was  the  chief  speaker  of  the  savages  on  that  occasion, 
while  Logan,  who  then  sat  in  sullen  silence  at  old  Chillicothe,  dis 
dained  to  meet  the  white  man  in  council,  but  by  John  Gibson,  the 
temporary  husband  of  his  murdered  sister,  who  was  commissioned 
to  invite  him  thither,  he  sent  a  memorable  speech :  "  I  appeal,"  he 
said,  "  to  any  white  man,  to  say  whether,  if  ever  he  entered  Logan's 
cabin  hungry  and  he  gave  him  no  meat  ?  if  ever  he  came  cold  and 
naked  and  he  clothed  him  not  ?  During  the  last  long  and  bloody 
war  Logan  remained  idle  in  his  cabin,  an  advocate  for  peace.  Such 
was  my  love  for  the  whites,  that  my  countrymen  pointed  as  they 
passed,  and  said,  '  Logan  is  the  friend  of  the  white  man.'  I  had 
even  thought  to  have  lived  with  you,  but  for  the  injuries  of  one 
man.  Colonel  Cresap,  the  last  spring,  in  cold  blood  and  unprovoked, 
murdered  all  the  relatives  of  Logan,*  not  even  sparing  women  and 

*  Justice  to  the  memory  of  Michael  Cresap,  a  brave,  honorable,  and  humane  man,  demands  an 
explanation  here.  Cresap  was  importuned  by  the  pioneers  he  had  assembled,  to  be  allowed  to  fall 


474  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

children.  There  runs  not  a  drop  of  my  blood  in  the  veins  of  any 
living  creature.  This  called  on  me  for  revenge  !  I  have  sought  it ; 
I  have  killed  many ;  I  have  fully  glutted  my  vengeance  !  For  rny 
people,  I  rejoice  at  the  beams  of  peace ;  but  do  not  harbor  a 
thought  that  mine  is  the  joy  of  fear — Logan  never  felt  fear.  He 
will  not  turn  on  his  heel  to  save  his  life !  Who  is  there  to  mourn 
for  Logan  ?  Not  one  !" 

The  conduct  of  Governor  Dunmore  during  that  campaign  has 
been  differently  construed  by  different  writers.  It  is  generally 
believed  by  the  best  informed,  that  he  was,  even  at  that  time,  in 
secret  friendly  intercourse  with  the  Indian  chiefs  in  the  Ohio  coun 
try,  through  Girty,  JVPKee,  Elliot,  Connolly,  and  other  white  men, 
for  it  is  well  known  that  he  employed  Connolly,  the  following 
summer,  in  exciting  the  Indians  to  fall  upon  the  white  settlements 
on  the  frontiers  of  the  province,  hoping,  thereby,  to  weaken  the 
power  and  resources  of  the  people,  then  engaged  in  their  struggle 
for  independence.  There  seems  to  be  ample  testimony  to  give 
color  to  the  suspicion,  that  Dunmore  arranged  the  campaign  in 
1774,  in  such  a  way,  that  the  whole  Indian  force  should  fall  upon 
and  annihilate  Lewis's  detachment,  and  thus  break  down  the  spirit 
of  the  Virginians,  then  so  high  in  vindication  of  their  rights. 

The  fact  that  the  great  body  of  the  Indians  left  their  towns  to 
attack  Colonel  Lewis  at  Point  Pleasant,  while  Dunmore,  with  a 
force  equally  strong,  was  approaching  them  in  another  direction, 
together  with  the  eagerness  displayed  by  his  lordship  to  treat  with 
the  Indians  rather  than  chastise  them,  made  suspicions  of  the  treach- 

upon  the  settlement  of  Logan,  but  he  would  not  listen  to  it,  and  the  project  was  abandoned.  At 
the  time  of  the  massacre,  Crcsap  was  with  his  family  in  Maryland,  and  had  no  knowledge  of  the 
matter  until  some  time  afterward.  As  Cresap  commanded  the  pioneers  in  the  spring  of  1774,  and 
as  the  massacre  was  perpetrated  by  some  of  those  people,  Logan  held  him  responsible.  Soon  after 
that  event,  Logan  made  a  white  prisoner  in  his  hands  write  the  following  note,  with  ink  made  of 
gunpowder  and  water:  "Captain  Cresap.  —  What  did  you  kill  my  people  on  Yellow  creek  for? 
The  white  people  killed  my  kin  at  Concstoga,  a  great  while  ago,  and  I  thought  nothing  of  that. 
But  you  killed  my  kin  again  on  Yellow  creek,  and  took  my  cousin  prisoner.  Then  I  thought  I 
must  kill  too;  and  I  have  been  three  times  to  war  since.  But  the  Indians  are  not  angry  —  only 
myself."  "  CAPT.  JOHN  LOGAN." 

This  was  dated,  "July  21,  1774."  It  was  attached  to  a  war-club,  and  left  in  the  house  of  a  man 
whose  whole  family  had  been  murdered  by  the  savages.  —  See  the  Discourse  of  Brantz  Mayer,  Esq., 
on  LOGAN,  before  the  Maryland  Historical  Society,  in  May,  1851. 


/Er.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  LABORS.  475 

ery  of  the  governor  rife  in  the  camp,  at  the  time  of  the  treaty. 
Sharp  words  passed  between  him  and  the  indignant  Lewis,  before 
the  assembling  of  the  council ;  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  treaty, 
and  while  the  army  was  on  its  return  to  Virginia,  early  in  Novem 
ber,  the  officers  held  a  meeting  at  Fort  Gower,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Hocking,  for  the  purpose  of  "  considering  the  grievances  of  British 
America."  The  proceedings  of  that  meeting  offended  the  governor, 
notwithstanding  they  passed  a  resolution  quite  complimentary  to 
him,  and  declared  their  loyal  attachment  to  their  sovereign,  because 
they  also  resolved  to  "maintain  the  just  rights  of  the  Americans 
by  every  means  in  their  power."  Both  parties  returned  home 
dissatisfied. 

These  events  were  chief  topics  for  conversation  when  Washington 
arrived  at  Mount  Yernon,  and  his  sagacious  mind  comprehended 
the  dangers  and  necessities  of  his  beloved  Virginia,  at  that  time, 
with  such  a  man  as  Dunmore  in  power.  This  perception  made  him 
more  ready  to  give  his  time  and  efforts  to  the  service  of  his  people, 
and  these  were  lavished  by  him  with  unsparing  liberality  whenever 
occasion  required.  Even  the  earnest  entreaties  of  a  friend — a 
dying  friend — who  wished  him  to  become  the  ward  of  his  only 
son,  were  listened  to  with  reluctance,  and  his  prayer  was  almost 
denied,  because  of  the  calls  of  public  business  which  interfered  so 
much  with  Washington's  private  concerns.  To  this  request  he 
answered  on  the  thirteenth  of  January,  1775  :  "What  with  my  own 
business,  my  present  ward's  [Mr.  Custis],  my  mother's,  which  is 
wholly  in  my  hands,*  Colonel  Colvell's,  Mr.  Savage's,  Colonel  Fair 
fax's,  Colonel  Mercer's,  and  the  little  assistance  I  have  undertaken 
to  give  in  the  management  of  my  brother  Augustine's  concerns 
(for  I  have  absolutely  refused  to  qualify  as  an  executor),  together 
with  the  share  I  take  in  public  affairs,  I  have  been  kept  constantly 
engaged  in  writing  letters,  settling  accounts,  and  negotiating  one 
piece  of  business  or  another ;  by  which  means  I  have  really  been 
deprived  of  every  kind  of  enjoyment."f  This  sentence  is  full  of 

*  Washington's  mother  then  resided  at  Fredericksburg,  and  she  was  becoming  quite  enfeebled 
by  age  and  disease. 

t  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.,  403. 


476  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

significance  in  forming  an  estimate  of  the  business  character  of 
Washington. 

On  Wednesday,  the  twentieth  of  March.,  1775,  the  second  Vir 
ginia  convention  assembled  in  old  St.  John's  church,  on  Richmond 
Hill,  in  Richmond.  Washington  was  a  member  of  that  convention, 
and  was  there  promptly  at  the  appointed  time.  He  lodged  with 
Samuel  Ege,  at  his  stone  house  on  Main  street,  the  first  dwelling 
erected  in  the  place ;  and  on  the  morning  of  the  meeting,  he 
walked  up  to  the  old  fane  with  Peyton  Randolph  and  Richard 
Henry  Lee.  It  was  a  soft,  balmy  morning.  The  trees  and  shrub- 
berry  were  in  full  foliage,  and  the  air  was  sweet  with  the  perfumes 
of  the  early  flowers.  Here  and  there  were  seen  groups  of  grave 
men,  just  before  the  hour  for  assembling,  sauntering  among  the 
tombstones,  thoughtful  and  serious,  talking  low  and  earnestly,  for 
they  had  a  great  work  before  them.  Their  thoughts  were  of  their 
country,  its  present  trials  and  its  future  destiny.  The  glorious  view 
from  that  eminence,  overlooking  the  fields  and  forests  of  Henrico 
and  Chesterfield  for  many  a  league,  arrested  not  their  attention. 
Then  the  now  flourishing  city  which  is  spread  over  several  hills, 
was  a  germ  at  their  feet — a  little  village  of  two  or  three  hundred 
inhabitants.  Shockoe  hill  on  which  the  stately  capitol,  and  Craw 
ford's  proud  monument  to  the  memory  of  Washington,  and  the 
elegant  dwellings  of  the  modern  town,  now  stand,  was  then  covered 
with  the  primeval  forest,  or  green  fields  made  beautiful  by  the 
tiller's  hand ;  and  the  leaping  cascades  of  the  James  river  were 
undisturbed  in  their  courses  by  mill-races  or  bridges. 

When  the  convention  was  organized,  there  was  evidently  much 
conservative  hesitation  in  the  whole  body.  They  all  felt  that  a 
fearful  storm  was  gathering,  but  were  perplexed  to  know  how  to 
meet  it  the  most  efficiently.  They  proceeded  first  to  express 
unqualified  approbation  of  the  acts  of  the  continental  Congress, 
and  applauded  the  wisdom  and  patriotism  of  its  members.  Then 
they  complimented  the  deputies  from  Virginia,  in  the  general  Con 
gress,  who  were  appointed  by  a  former  convention,  by  a  vote  of 
thanks,  "  for  their  cheerful  undertaking,  and  faithful  discharge  of 


M-r.  43.]  THE  VIRGINIA  CONVENTION.  477 

the  very  important  trust  reposed  in  them."  Three  days  passed 
away,  and  very  little  of  the  business  for  which  they  had  assembled 
was  even  entered  upon. 

The  morning  of  the  twenty-third  was  lowery,  and  at  ten  o'clock 
the  rain  fell  copiously,  yet  every  member  was  in  his  seat.  A 
memorial  from  the  assembly  of  Jamaica,  "  to  the  king's  most 
excellent  majesty,"  was  read,  and  thanks  were  voted  to  "  that  very 
respectable  assembly,"  for  its  patriotic  course.  All  this  while, 
Patrick  Henry,  wTho  represented  Hanover,  and  had  said  little,  was 
restless  and  impatient.  The  proceedings  were  altogether  too  tame 
and  temporizing  for  his  bold  spirit,  and  after  an  earnest  consultation 
with  Richard  Henry  Lee,  he  arose  and  offered  the  following  reso 
lutions  : — 

1.  "  That  a  well-regulated  militia,  composed    of  gentlemen  and 
yeomen,  is  the  natural  strength  and  only  security  of  a  free  govern 
ment;  that  such  a  militia  in  this  colony  wrould  for  ever  render  it 
unnecessary  for   the  mother-country  to    keep   among    us,  for   the 
purpose  of  our  defence,  any  standing  army  of  mercenary  soldiers, 
always  subversive  of  the  quiet,  and  dangerous  to  the  liberties  of 
the  people,  and  would  alleviate  the  pretext  of  taxing  us  for  their 
support. 

2.  "  That  the  establishment  of  such  a  militia  is,  at  this  time,  pecu 
liarly  necessary,  by  the  state  of  our  laws  for  the  protection  and 
defence  of  the  country,  some  of  which  are  already  expired,  and 
others  will  shortly  be  so ;  and  that  the  known  remissness  of  gov 
ernment  in  calling  us  together,  in  legislative  capacity,  renders  it  too 
insecure,  in  this  time  of   danger  and  distress,  to  rely  upon,  that 
opportunity  will  be  given  of  renewing  them,  in  general  assembly, 
or  making  any  provision  to  secure  our  inestimable  rights  and  liber 
ties  from  those  further  violations  with  which  they  are  threatened. 

3.  "Resolved,  therefore,  That  this  colony  be  immediately  put  into 
a  state  of  defence,  and  that  -          -  be  a  committee  to  prepare  a 
plan  for  the  embodying,  arming,  and  disciplining,  such  a  number  of 
men  as  may  be  sufficient  for  that  purpose." 

These  resolutions,  like   others   from  the   same    pen,  that  were 


478  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

offered  in  the  Virginia  house  of  burgesses,  ten  years  before,  alarmed 
even  the  stoutest  patriots,  for  they  breathed  of  civil  war ;  and  such 
tried  men  as  Richard  Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  Edmund  Pendle- 
ton,  and  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  stanch  and  unyielding  friends  of 
liberty,  opposed  them  as  rash  in  policy,  and  ungenerous  in  feeling. 
They  yet  hoped  for  reconciliation  with  Great  Britain,  and  were 
unwilling  to  do  aught  to  extinguish  that  hope,  while  its  entertain 
ment  was  reasonable.  They  insisted  upon  a  longer  display  of 
dignified  patience,  believing  that  already  a  change  in  the  public 
feeling  in  England,  in  favor  of  the  Americans,  was  working  out  the 
final  deliverance  of  the  colonies  from  their  complained-of  oppres 
sions.  They  pointed  to  the  puissance  of  Britain  and  the  weakness 
of  the  colonies,  and  painted,  in  dark  colors,  the  miseries  into  which 
a  war  with  the  mother-country  would  plunge  all  America.  "  Are 
we  ready  for  war?"  they  asked.  "Where  are  our  stores — where 
are  our  arms — where  our  soldiers — where  our  generals — where 
our  money,  the  sinews  of  war  ?  They  are  nowhere  to  be  found. 
In  truth,  we  are  poor,  we  are  naked,  we  are  defenceless,"  they 
continued.  "  Yet  we  talk  of  assuming  the  front  of  war !  of  assu 
ming  it,  too,  against  a  nation,  one  of  the  most  formidable  in  the 
world ;  a  nation  ready  and  armed  at  all  points ;  her  navies  riding 
triumphant  on  every  sea,  her  armies  never  marching  but  to  certain 
victory !  What  is  to  be  the  issue  of  the  struggle  we  are  called 
upon  to  court  ?  What  can  be  the  issue,  in  the  comparative  circum 
stances  of  the  two  countries,  but  to  yield  up  this  cowitrt/  an  easy 
prey  to  Great  Britain,  and  to  convert  the  illegitimate  right  which 
the  British  Parliament  now  claims,  into  a  firm  and  indubitable  right, 
ly  conquest?  The  measure  may  be  brave,  but  is  the  bravery  of 
madmen.  It  has  no  pretension  to  the  character  of  prudence,  and 
as  little  to  the  grace  of  genuine  courage.  It  will  be  time  enough 
to  resort  to  measures  of  despair,  when  every  well-founded  hope  has 
entirely  vanished."* 

Every  appearance,  at  that  time,  justified  these  remarks,  but  they 
had  no  other  effect  upon  Henry,  than  to  arouse  his  spirit  to  loftier 

*  Wirt's  Life  of  Patrick  Henry. 


Mr.  43.]  PATRICK  HENRY'S  SPEECH.  479 

action.  He  arose  with  unusual  dignity,  and  with  a  soft,  subdued 
voice,  said,  that  no  man  thought  more  highly  than  he  did  of  the 
patriotism,  as  well  as  of  the  abilities,  of  the  very  worthy  gentlemen 
who  had  just  addressed  the  house.  He  then  went  on  to  say,  that 
different  persons  views  things  differently,  and  as  his  opinions  were 
contrary  to  theirs,  he  should  speak  his  sentiments  freely  and  with 
out  reserve.  It  was  no  time  for  ceremony.  The  question  was  one 
of  awful  moment  to  the  country.  To  him  it  seemed  a  question  of 
freedom  or  slavery.  Should  he  keep  back  his  opinions,  at  such  a 
time,  through  fear  of  giving  offence,  he  should  consider  himself  as 
guilty  of  treason  toward  his  country,  and  as  an  act  of  disloyalty 
toward  the  Majesty  of  Heaven,  which  he  revered  before  all  earthly 
kings. 

"  Mr.  President,"  he  continued,  as  his  voice  arose  with  the  kindling 
of  his  higher  emotions,  "it  is  natural  to  man  to  indulge  in  the 
illusions  of  hope.  We  are  apt  to  shut  our  eyes  against  a  painful 
truth,  and  listen  to  the  song  of  that  siren,  till  she  transforms  us 

into  beasts." "He  had,"  he  said,  "but  one  lamp  by  which  his 

feet  were  to  be  guided,  and  that  was  the  lamp  of  experience." 
Then  referring  to  the  apparently  gracious  manner  with  which  the 
king  had  received  the  petition  of  the  continental  Congress,  to  which 
the  other  speakers  had  alluded,  he  exclaimed:  "Suffer  not  your 
selves  to  be  betrayed  by  a  kiss.  Ask  yourselves  how  this  gracious 
reception  comports  with  those  warlike  preparations  which  cover 
our  waters  and  darken  our  land.  Are  fleets  and  armies  necessary 
to  a  work  of  love  and  reconciliation  ?  Have  we  shown  ourselves 
so  unwilling  to  be  reconciled,  that  force  must  be  called  in  to  win  us 
back  to  our  love  ?  Let  us  not  deceive  ourselves,  sir !  These  are 
the  implements  of  war  and  subjugation;  the  last  arguments  to 
which  kings  resort.  I  ask,  gentlemen,  what  means  this  martial 
array,  if  its  purpose  be  not  to  force  us  to  submission  ?  Has  Great 
Britain  any  enemy  in  this  quarter  of  the  world,  to  call  for  all  this 
accumulation  of  armies  and  navies  ?  No,  sir,  she  has  none.  They 
are  meant  for  us ;  they  can  be  meant  for  no  other.  They  are  sent 
over  to  bind  and  rivet  upon  us  those  chains  which  the  British 


480  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

ministry  have  been  so  long  forging.  And  what  have  we  to  oppose 
them  ?  Shall  we  try  argument  ?  Sir,  we  have  been  trying  argu 
ment  for  the  last  ten  years....  We  have  petitioned;  we  have 
supplicated ;  we  have  prostrated  ourselves  before  the  throne,  and 
have  implored  its  interposition  to  arrest  the  tyrannical  hands  of 
the  ministry  and  Parliament.  Our  petitions  have  been  slighted ; 
our  remonstrances  have  produced  additional  violence  and  insult ; 
our  supplications  have  been  disregarded ;  and  we  have  been  spurned 
with  contempt  from  the  foot  of  the  throne.  In  vain,  after  these 
things,  may  we  indulge  the  fond  hope  of  reconciliation.  There  is 
no  longer  any  room  for  hope.  If  we  wish  to  be  free ;  if  we  wrish  to 
preserve  inviolate  those  inestimable  privileges  for  which  we  have 
been  so  long  contending;  if  we  mean  not  basely  to  abandon  the 
noble  struggle  in  which  we  have  been  so  long  engaged,  and  which 
we  have  pledged  ourselves  never  to  abandon  until  the  glorious 
object  of  our  contest  shall  be  obtained,  WE  MUST  FIGHT  !  I  repeat  it, 
sir,  WE  MUST  FIGHT  !*  An  appeal  to  arms  and  to  the  God  of  Hosts  is 
all  that  is  left  us. 

"They  tell  us,  sir,  that  we  are  weak  —  unable  to  cope  with  so 
formidable  an  enemy.  But  when  shall  we  be  stronger?  Will  it  be 
next  week,  or  next  year  ?  Will  it  be  when  we  are  totally  disarmed, 
and  when  a  British  guard  shall  be  stationed  in  every  house  ?  Shall 
we  gather  strength  by  irresolution  and  inaction  ?  Shall  we  acquire 
the  means  of  effectual  resistance  by  lying  supinely  on  our  backs, 
and  hugging  the  delusive  phantom  of  hope,  until  our  enemies  shall 
have  bound  us  hand  and  foot  ?  Sir,  we  are  not  weak,  if  we  make  a 
proper  use  of  those  means  which  the  God  of  nature  hath  placed  in 
our  power.  Three  millions  of  people,  armed  in  the  holy  cause  of 

*  These  words  were  used  by  Major  Joseph  Hawley,  four  months  before,  in  a  letter  to  John 
Adams,  in  which  he  sent  a  paper  that  he  had  drawn  up,  called,  "Broken  Hints  to  be  communicated 
to  the  Committee  of  Congress  for  Massachusetts."  These  "  Hints"  commenced  with  the  words, 
"  We  must  Jifjht,  if  we  can  not  otherwise  rid  ourselves  of  British  taxation,"  &c.  John  Adams  com 
municated  this  paper  to  H.  Nilcs,  editor  of  the  "Weekly  Register,"  in  1819,  with  these  words: 
"This  is  the  original  paper  that  I  read  to  Patrick  Henry,  in  the  fall  of  the  year  1774,  which  pro 
duced  his  rapturous  burst  of  approbation,  and  solemn  asserveration,  '  Lain  of  that  mind.'  " — See  NikVs 
"  Principles  and  Acts  of  the  Revolution,"  page  324.  The  editor  of  the  "  Life  and  Works  of  John 
Adams,"  ix.,  343,  says  of  Hawley,  "  Of  this  remarkable  man,  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  so  few  traces 
remain.  Even  under  the  pen  of  an  enemy  like  Hutchinson,  his  character  shines  like  burnished 
gold  " 


M-r.  43.]  EFFECT  OF  HENRY'S  SPEECH.  481 

Liberty,  and  in  such  a  country  as  that  which  we  possess,  are  invin 
cible  by  any  force  which  our  enemy  can  send  against  us.  Besides, 
sir,  we  shall  not  fight  our  battles  alone.  There  is  a  just  God  who 
presides  over  the  destinies  of  nations,  and  who  will  raise  up  friends 
to  fight  our  battles  for  us.  The  battle,  sir,  is  not  to  the  strong 
alone ;  it  is  to  the  vigilant,  the  active,  the  brave.  And  again,  we 
have  no  election.  If  we  were  base  enough  to  desire  it,  it  is  now 
too  late  to  retire  from  the  contest.*  There  is  no  retreat  but  in 
submission  and  slavery !  Our  chains  are  forged  !  Their  clanking 
may  be  heard  on  the  plains  of  Boston !  The  war  is  inevitable !  and 
let  it  come  ! !  I  repeat  it,  sir,  let  it  come ! ! ! 

It  is  vain,  sir,  to  extenuate  the  matter.  Gentlemen  may  cry 
peace,  peace  ;  but  there  is  no  peace  !  The  war  is  actually  begun ! 
The  next  gale  that  sweeps  from  the  north  will  bring  to  our  ears 
the  clash  of  resounding  arms  !f  Our  brethren  are  already  in  the 
field !  What  is  it  that  gentlemen  wish  ?  What  would  they  have  ? 
Is  life  so  dear,  or  peace  so  sweet,  as  to  be  purchased  at  the  price  of 
chains  and  slavery  ?  Forbid  it,  Almighty  God  !  I  know  not  what 
course  others  may  take,  but  as  for  me,"  he  cried,  with  both  arms 
extended  aloft,  his  brow  knit,  every  feature  marked  with  the  reso 
lute  purpose  of  his  soul,  and  with  his  voice  swelled  to  its  loudest 
note,  "  GIVE  ME  LIBERTY,  OR  GIVE  ME  DEATH  ! ! !"J 

The  effect  of  this  speech,  especially  of  its  peroration,  was  too 
deep  to  allow  of  a  murmur  of  applause.  In  a  few  moments  Rich 
ard  Henry  Lee  arose,  and  with  his  polished  eloquence,  ably  sup 
ported  Mr.  Henry's  resolutions,  quoting,  in  conclusion,  the  line— 

"  Thrice  armed  is  he,  who  has  his  quarrel  just." 

But  his  words  were  almost  lost  in  the  echo  of  those  of  Patrick 
Henry.  "  The  cry  To  arms  /"  says  Mr.  Wirt,  "  seemed  to  quiver  on 
every  lip.  That  supernatural  voice  still  sounded  in  their  ears,  and 

*  The  boldness  of  Mr.  Henry  on  this  occasion  caused  his  name,  with  those  of  Samuel  and  John 
Adams,  John  Hancock,  Thomas  Jeffersan,  Peyton  Randolph,  and  others,  to  be  presented  to  the 
British  government  in  a  bill  of  attainder. 

t  This  prediction  was  speedily  fulfilled ;  for  almost  "  the  next  gale  from  the  North"  conveyed  the 
boom  of  the  signal  gun  of  freedom  at  Lexington 

t  Wirt's  Life  of  Patrick  Henry. 

31 


482  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

shivered  along  their  arteries.  They  heard  in  every  pause,  the  cry 
of  Liberty  or  Death!  They  became  impatient  of  speech.  Their 
souls  were  on  fire  for  action." 

Mr.  Henry's  resolutions  were  adopted,  and  a  committee  of  twelve 
was  appointed  to  prepare  a  plan,  pursuant  to  the  recommendation 
of  the  third  one.*  The  convention  then  proceeded  to  elect  dele 
gates  to  the  second  continental  Congress,  to  assemble  at  Philadel 
phia  in  May.*}*  On  the  final  adjournment  of  the  assembly,  on  the 
twenty-fifth,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  while  taking  leave  of  two  of  his 
colleagues  in  the  vestibule  of  the  church,  wrote,  with  a  pencil,  the 
following  lines  from  "  Macbeth"  upon  the  doorway : — 

"  When  shall  we  three  meet  again, 
In  thunder,  lightning,  or  in  rain  ? 
When  the  hurly-burly  's  done, 
When  the  battle 's  lost  and  won  /" 

The  members  of  the  Virginia  convention  left  Richmond  full  of 
zeal  in  the  cause  of  freedom,  and  firmly  resolved  to  draw  the 
sword,  if  necessary.  On  the  day  of  the  adjournment,  and  before 
leaving  for  home,  Washington  wrote  to  his  brother,  John  Augustine, 
commending  him  for  his  services  in  training  an  independent  com 
pany,  and  offering  to  command  it,  "if  occasion  require  it  to  be 
drawn  out."  A  company  at  Richmond  had  also  tendered  the  com 
mand  of  themselves  to  Washington  in  such  an  event,  and  he  had 
agreed  to  review  them.  No  doubt  he  felt  a  full  assurance  at  that 
time,  that  the  occasion  was  certain  and  near;  and  he  closed  his 
letter  to  his  brother  with  the  significant  words,  "  It  is  my  full  inten 
tion  to  devote  my  life  and  fortune  in  the  cause  we  are  engaged  in, 
if  needful."J 

*  Patrick  Henry,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  Benjamin  Harrison,  Lemuel  Riddick, 
George  Washington,  Adam  Stephen,  Andrew  Lewis,  William  Christian,  Edmund  Pendleton, 
Thomas  Jefferson,  and  Isaac  Zane,  were  appointed. 

t  Peyton  Randolph,  George  Washington,  Patrick  Henry,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  Edmund  Pendleton, 
Benjamin  Harrison,  and  Richard  Bland,  were  chosen. 

J  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  ii.,  404 


i.  43.]  OVERT  ACTS  OF  REBELLION.  433 


CHAPTER   XLIV. 

TARDY  INTERCOMMUNICATION REBELLIOUS  MOVEMENTS  IN  NEW  ENGLAND THE 

NEW  PARLIAMENT  AND  THE  MINISTRY EFFORTS  OF  FRANKLIN  AND  OTHERS 

COUNTER-EFFORTS  OF  DOCTOR  ROEBUCK OPPOSING  PETITIONS CARICATURES 

—  DEAN  TUCKER'S  PROPOSITION — CONDUCT  OF  THE  MINISTRY — CHATHAM  AND 

FRANKLIN CHATHAM'S  PROPOSITION  AND  GREAT    SPEECH THEIR  EEFECT 

REJECTION  OF  THE  PROPOSITION CHATHAM'S  CONCILIATORY  PLAN ITS  FATE 

VOTES  OF  THANKS COERCIVE  MEASURES  PROPOSED PROCEEDINGS  IN  PAR 
LIAMENT  IN  RELATION  TO  THESE  MEASURES NORTH'S  CONCILIATORY  SCHEME. 

IN  the  days  we  are  now  considering,  ships  were  comparatively 
slow  sailers,  and  a  voyage  between  America  and  Europe  generally 
occupied  several  weeks.  Cause  and  effect  in  the  political  relations 
of  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies  were  thus  placed  distant  from 
each  other,  and  in  the  interim,  events  occurred  wrhich  materially 
changed  the  aspect  of  questions  in  their  bearing  upon  existing 
circumstances.  While  intelligence  of  an  act  of  Parliament  was 
coming  slowly  over  the  sea,  the  colonies  might  be  making  progress 
in  measures  which  would  render  that  act  inapplicable  to  their 
changed  position ;  and  criminations  and  explanations,  passing  each 
other  in  mid-ocean,  produced  misunderstandings  at  each  point  of 
departure.  It  was  this  confusion,  wrought  by  distance,  more  than 
anything  else  aside  from  the  principles  involved,  that  kept  open 
the  breach  between  the  government  and  the  colonists. 

In  November,  1774,  before  the  dignified  measures  and  respectful 
remonstrances  and  petitions  of  the  continental  Congress  reached 
England,  the  new  Parliament  had  taken  action  in  relation  to  the 
colonies,  which  produced  great  indignation  in  America.  This  was 
followed  by  a  proclamation  of  the  king,  prohibiting  the  exportation, 
from  Great  Britain  to  her  colonies,  of  arms  and  military  stores. 
No  sooner  was  this  mandate  known,  than  the  colonists  resolved  to 


484  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

secure  such  munitions  of  war  as  were  within  their  reach.  The  in 
habitants  of  Rhode  Island  took  the  first  step  in  that  direction.  They 
immediately  seized  upon  and  removed  from  the  batteries  at  New 
port,  forty-four  pieces  of  cannon,  and  conveyed  them  to  Providence  ; 
and  Governor  Wanton  bluntly  told  Sir  James  Wallace,  who  came  to 
cruise  in  Narraganset  bay,  and  who  questioned  him  concerning  the 
matter,  that  they  were  taken  away  to  prevent  their  falling  into  his 
hands,  and  to  be  used  in  self-defence  when  the  people  should  be 
molested  by  British  officials.  Soon  afterward,  in  mid-December, 
Paul  Revere,  the  patriotic  engraver  and  mechanic  of  Boston,  in 
flamed  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  New  Hampshire  by  recitals  of 
the  wrongs  inflicted  by  Gage,  and  the  necessity  of  preparing  for 
war ;  and  four  hundred  of  them,  led  by  John  Sullivan,  who  was  to 
be  a  major-general  in  the  Revolution,  and  John  Langdon,  a  prin 
cipal  merchant  in  Portsmouth,  they  proceeded  to  take  possession  of 
the  fort  at  that  place,  which  was  guarded  by  less  than  half  a  dozen 
men.  Captain  Cochrane,  the  commander  of  the  little  garrison, 
fired  a  three-pounder  and  some  small  arms  at  the  insurgents.  But 
Cochrane  and  his  men  were  speedily  made  prisoners,  and  while 
they  were  kept  in  custody,  the  patriots  carried  off,  in  boats,  one 
hundred  barrels  of  powder,  some  cannon,  and  small  arms.  The 
royal  governor,  Wentworth,  was  incensed  by  this  high-handed  meas 
ure  ;  and  Secretary  Atkinson,  who  was  the  personal  friend  of  Lang 
don,  said  to  him,  "  Your  head  will  be  a  button  for  a  gallows-rope," 
and  advised  him  to  flee  from  the  country.  The  people  assured 
Langdon  of  the  protection  of  their  strong  arms,  and  he  remained, 
to  become  a  member  of  the  continental  Congress,  the  speaker  of 
the  New  Hampshire  provincial  assembly,  and  with  associate  legis 
lators  to  fight  for  his  country,  as  a  volunteer,  upon  the  heights  of 
Saratoga.  These  movements  of  the  people  were  soon  imitated  by 
the  representatives  of  royalty  in  America,  as  we  shall  observe 
presently. 

Many  conservative  patriots,  among  whom  Washington  may  be 
ranked,  earnestly  wishing  for  reconciliation  with  Great  Britain,  but 
not  with  any  genuine  hope,  had  looked  writh  intense  interest  for  the 


MT.  43.]  MISSIONARIES  FOR  FREEDOM.  485 

result  of  the  general  election  for  members  of  Parliament  in  the 
autumn  of  1774,  and  to  the  effect  which  the  acts  of  the  continental 
Congress  would  have  upon  the  king  and  that  body.  That  result 
did  not  foreshadow  any  good  for  the  colonists,  for  Lord  North  and 
his  colleagues  found  themselves  supported  by  an  overwhelming 
majority  in  the  house  of  commons.  The  king,  too,  had  resolved  to 
bring  the  colonies  into  unconditional  submission  to  the  imperial 
government ;  and  the  attitude  of  rebellion  which  the  inhabitants  in 
some  of  the  provinces  had  assumed,  had  seriously  prejudiced  the 
people  of  England  against  the  Americans,  toward  the  close  of  1774. 

Meanwhile,  the  able  papers  put  forth  by  the  continental  Congress 
had  arrived  in  Britain,  and  produced  a  profound  impression  upon 
the  public  mind.  Doctor  Franklin  and  other  colonial  agents  at 
court,  were  exceedingly  active  in  giving  general  circulation  to  those 
papers,  through  the  gazettes  and  otherwise,  especially  the  "  Address 
to  the  Inhabitants  of  Great  Britain."  These,  assisted  by  other 
friends  of  the  Americans  (some  of  them  members  of  Parliament), 
traversed  all  of  the  manufacturing  towns  of  the  north  of  England,* 
and  by  personal  communications,  enlightened  the  inhabitants  upon 
the  great  questions  at  issue.  The  ministry  became  alarmed,  and  at 
once  made  efforts  to  counteract  this  itinerant  rebellion,  before  it 
should  gain  strength  and  permanency.  Adam  Smith,  the  political 
economist,  and  Wedderburne,  the  solicitor-general,  who  had  recently 
abused  Doctor  Franklin  before  the  privy  council,  persuaded  the 
popular  and  eloquent  Doctor  Roebuck,  of  Birmingham,  to  follow  in 
the  wake  of  these  missionaries  of  freedom,  and,  if  possible,  to  undo 
the  mischief,  so  called,  which  they  might  accomplish. 

While  Franklin  and  his  associates  had  right  and  justice  on  their 
side,  and  the  powerful  advocacy  of  self-interest  to  sustain  them, 
Doctor  Roebuck  had  the  strength  of  the  entire  government — king, 
lords,  and  commons — to  aid  his  efforts.  In  the  American  Associa 
tion,  that  powerful  instrument  forged  by  the  continental  Congress, 

*  The  manufacturers  of  these  districts  were  chiefly  dissenters,  and  viewing  the  established 
Church  somewhat  in  the  light  of  an  oppressor,  their  loyalty  was  quite  as  weak  as  any  portion  of  the 
Deputation  of  England. 


486  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  Great  Britain  saw  a  menace 
of  commercial  ruin  to  themselves,  and  they  acted  promptly.  In 
this,  self-interest  was  the  prime  motive.  Strong  but  respectful 
petitions  in  favor  of  conciliatory  measures  toward  the  Americans, 
were  consequently  sent  in  to  Parliament  from  the  dissenting  manu 
facturers  ;  and  equally  strong  petitions  went  from  London,  Bristol, 
Liverpool,  Manchester,  Norwich,  Birmingham,  Glasgow,  and  other 
cities,  in  which  the  great  detriment  to  business  from  the  troubled 
state  of  American  affairs,  was  glowingly  portrayed,  and  Parliament 
was  earnestly  implored  to  re-establish  pacific  relations  with  the 
colonies.  Doctor  Roebuck,  by  the  employment  of  menace,  dupli 
city,  and  sophistry,  also  procured  some  petitions,  adverse  to  the 
others,  and  while  the  former  were  referred  to  an  inactive  com 
mittee,  aptly  styled  by  Burke,  "  the  committee  of  oblivion,"  these 
were  all  presented  at  once,  without  reference,  and  were  acted  upon 
and  treated  with  the  greatest  consideration,  as  "  the  voice  of  the 
people." 

Never,  in  the  history  of  constitutional  legislation,  was  there  given 
an  instance  of  more  flagrant  disregard  of  the  voice  of  the  people 
than  in  this,  and  it  excited  great  clamor.  Writers  of  every  degree, 
in  the  gazettes,  in  pamphlets,  and  in  broadside  placards,  engaged  in 
the  discussions  that  arose ;  and  the  sharp  pencil  of  caricature  in 
the  hands  of  art,  embodied  in  magic  lines  the  prevailing  spirit  of 
the  people.  Satire,  too,  sometimes  humorous  and  sometimes  severe, 
sent  its  shafts  right  and  left.  The  ministry  formed  the  chief  target, 
but  the  king  did  not  escape  without  many  severe  punctures.  While 
one  caricature  represented  Lord  North  as  "  blustering  Boreas,"  eying 
the  distant  colonies  through  his  glass,  and  showing  his  ignorance  of 
the  difficulties  with  which  he  had  to  contend  by  the  flippant  and 
vaunting  threat,  "I  promise  to  reduce  the  Americans  in  three 
months;"*  another  represented  the  not  very  intellectual  features 
of  his  majesty,  as  a  figure-head  to  "the  Whitehall  pump,"  from 
which  North  was  ejecting  cold  water  upon  prostrate  Britannia  and 

*  See  Wright's  "  England  under  the  House  of  Hanover,  illustrated  from  Caricatures  and  Satires 
of  the  Day,"  ii.  24. 


MT.  43.]  DEAN  TUCKER'S  PROPOSITION.  487 

her  daughter,  America,  to  his  apparent  delight,  But  of  all  the 
writers  and  speakers  of  that  time,  only  Dean  Tucker,  a  famous 
pamphleteer,  had  the  hardihood  and  the  manly  wisdom  to  propose 
a  peaceful  separation  of  the  colonies  from  the  parent  government. 
He  proposed  that  Parliament,  by  solemn  act,  should  declare  that 
the  colonies  had  forfeited  all  the  privileges  of  British  subjects,  by 
sea  and  land,  and  that  they  should  be  cut  off  from  the  British 
empire,  and  disallowed  any  application  for  the  restoration  of  those 
rights  and  privileges,  until,  by  humble  petition,  they  should  ask  for 
pardon  and  reinstatement.*  Had  this  pacific  course  been  pursued, 
the  independence  of  the  United  States  might  have  been  achieved 
without  the  fearful  expenditure  of  life  and  treasure  which  it  cost. 
Blind  as  moles,  the  ministry  also  shut  their  ears  to  the  voice  of 
entreaty  and  the  menaces  of  desperation.  The  haughty  contempt 
with  which  the  prayers  of  the  merchants  and  manufacturers,  joined 
with  those  of  the  colonists,  were  treated  at  that  time,  can  be  ac 
counted  for  only  by  supposing,  that  the  loyal  bearing  of  the  New 
York  assembly  gave  ministers  encouraging  hope  that  the  other 
provinces  were  on  the  point  of  bowing  submissively  to  the  authority 
of  Parliament. 

On  the  nineteenth  of  January,  1775,  Parliament  reassembled. 
It  had  adjourned,  for  the  Christmas  holydays,  early  in  December. 
Meanwhile  positive  information  concerning  the  proceedings  of  the 
Congress  had  been  received ;  and  the  earl  of  Chatham,  as  we  have 
seen,  full  of  zeal  for  the  Americans,  was  in  his  place.  He  had 
written  to  his  wife,  in  London,  on  the  sixteenth,  asking  her  for 
positive  information  whether  the  house  of  lords  would  meet  on  a 
certain  day,  saying :  "  I  fear  jockeyship,  am  resolved  to  be  there  on 
the  first  day  of  meeting,  and  wish  you  would  tell  Lord  Stanhope 
that  I  shall  propose  something  relative  to  America  on  the  first  day ; 

*  Josiah  Tucker  was  the  son  of  Abraham  Tucker,  an  English  squire  ;  but  instead  of  enjoying  the 
pleasures  of  the  chase  and  other  amusements,  he  studied  metaphysics  at  his  father's  country-seat, 
and  became  a  celebrated  divine.  Under  the  fictitious  name  of  Edward  Search,  he  published  a  work 
entitled,  "  The  Light  of  Nature  pursued,"  which  has  been  pronounced  by  the  best  critics,  the  most 
original  work  of  its  kind,  ever  produced.  It  was  in  nine  octavo  volumes.  Mr.  Tucker  was  after 
ward  made  dean  of  Gloucester,  and  became  a  famous  pamphleteer  at  the  time  of  our  war  for  inde 
pendence 


488  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

which  purpose  I  wish  to  have  generally  known  and  propagated,  as 
early  as  may  be."*  Two  days  afterward  Lady  Chatham  replied  : 
"  I  think  it  important  that  you  should  know  what  infinite  pains  are 
taken  to  circulate  an  authoritative  report,  that  you  are  determined  to 
give  yourself  no  trouble  upon  American  affairs,  and  that,  for  certain, 
you  do  not  mean  to  come  to  town."f  She  told  him  that  this  rumor 
had  given  his  friends  great  uneasiness ;  and  the  countess  herself 
was  much  distressed.  On  the  same  day  Chatham  replied :  "  For 
God's  sake,  sweet  life,  don't  disquiet  yourself  about  the  impudent 
and  ridiculous  lie  of  the  hour.  The  plot  does  lie  very  deep.  It  is 
only  a  pitiful  device  of  fear ;  court  fear,  and  faction  fear.  If  gout 
does  not  put  in  a  veto,  which  I  trust  in  Heaven  it  will  not,  I  will  be 
in  the  house  of  ]ords  on  Friday,  then  and  there  to  make  a  motion 
relative  to  America.  Be  of  good  cheer,  noble  love — 

"  Yes,  I  am  proud  —  I  must  be  proud  —  to  see, 
Men,  not  afraid  of  God,  afraid  of  me."J 

On  the  following  morning  he  wrote  to  Lord  Stanhope  :  "  I  mean 
to-morrow,  to  touch  only  the  threshold  of  American  business,  and 
knock  at  the  minister's  door  to  wake  him,  as  well  as  show  I  attend 
to  America.  I  shall  move  for  an  address,  to  send  orders  imme 
diately  for  removing  the  forces  from  the  town  of  Boston  as  soon 
as  practicable....  I  greatly  wish  Doctor  Franklin  may  be  in  the 
house,  if  the  house  is  open  to  others  than  members  of  Parliament.''! 
Immediately  after  the  receipt  of  this,  Stanhope  sent  a  note  to 
Franklin,  acquainting  him  with  the  expressed  desire  of  Chatham. 
Accordingly,  at  an  appointed  hour  the  next  day,  Franklin  met 
Chatham  in  the  lobby  of  the  house,  when  the  latter  took  him  by 
the  arm,  saying,  "  I  am  sure  your  presence  at  this  day's  debate,  will 
be  of  more  service  to  America  than  mine."  The  earl  then  ap 
proached  the  doorkeeper,  and  said,  in  a  loud  voice,  "  This  is  Doctor 
Franklin,  whom  I  would  have  admitted  into  the  house."  The  door 
was  readily  opened ;  and  this  public  proclamation  of  communica 
tions  between  the  eminent  English  stateman  and  American  sage 

*  Correspondence  of  the  earl  of  Chatham,  iv.,  369.  f  Ibid,  iv.,  370.  J  Ibid,  iv.,  371. 


JE?.  43.j  CHATHAM'S  PROPOSITION.  489 

occasioned  much  remark.  "The  appearance  of  Chatham  in  the 
house,"  said  Doctor  Franklin,  "  caused  a  kind  of  bustle  among  the 
officers,  who  were  hurried  in  sending  messengers  for  members,  I 
suppose  those  in  connection  with  the  ministry,  something  of  im 
portance  being  expected  when  that  great  man  appears;  it  being 
but  seldom  that  his  infirmities  permit  his  attendance." 

Chatham  opened  the  proceedings  by  first  noticing  the  fact,  that 
Lord  North  had  laid  before  both  houses  of  Parliament,  the  day 
before,  a  great  mass  of  documents  received  from  the  colonial  gov 
ernors,  together  with  the  proceedings  of  the  American  Congress,  in 
detail,  and  then  proposed,  "  That  an  humble  address  be  presented  to 
his  majesty,  to  desire  and  beseech  that,  in  order  to  open  the  way 
toward  a  happy  settlement  of  the  dangerous  troubles  in  America, 
by  beginning  to  allay  ferments  and  soften  animosities  there ;  and, 
above  all,  for  preventing,  in  the  meantime,  any  sudden  and  fatal 
catastrophe  at  Boston,  now  suffering  under  the  daily  irritation  of 
an  army  before  their  eyes,  posted  in  their  town,  it  may  graciously 
please  his  majesty,  that  immediate  orders  be  despatched  to  General 
Gage,  for  removing  his  majesty's  forces  from  the  town  of  Boston,  as 
soon  as  the  rigor  of  the  season,  and  other  circumstances  indispen 
sable  to  the  safety  and  accommodation  of  the  said  troops,  may 
r*  nder  the  same  practicable." 

This  proposition  was  advocated  by  the  earl,  in  a  speech  of  over 
an  hour  in  length,  of  great  power,  and  such,  according  to  some  who 
heard  it,  as  never  before  fell  from  his  lips.  "  I  wish,  my  lords,"  he 
said, "  not  to  lose  a  day  in  this  urgent,  pressing  crisis.  An  hour  now 
lost  may  produce  years  of  calamity.  For  my  part,  I  will  not  desert, 
for  a  single  moment,  the  conduct  of  this  weighty  business,  from  the 
first  to  the  last ;  unless  nailed  to  my  bed  by  the  extremity  of  sick 
ness.  I  will  give  it  unremitted  attention ;  I  will  knock  at  the  door 
of  this  sleeping  and  confounded  ministry,  and  will  rouse  them  to  a 
sense  of  their  impending  danger.  When  I  state  the  importance  of 
the  colonies  to  this  country,  and  the  magnitude  of  danger  from  the 
present  plan  of  misadministration  practised  against  them,  I  desire 
not  to  be  understood  to  argue  for  a  reciprocity  of  indulgence 


490  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

between  England  and  America.  I  contend  not  for  indulgence,  but 
justice  for  America ;  and  I  shall  ever  contend,  that  the  Americans 
justly  owe  obedience  to  us  in  a  limited  degree." 

After  stating  the  bases  on  which  the  supremacy  of  Parliament 
was  justly  predicated,  the  great  orator  continued :  "  Resistance  to 
your  acts  was  as  necessary  as  it  was  just ;  and  your  vain  declara 
tions  of  the  omnipotence  of  Parliament,  and  your  imperious  doc 
trines  of  the  necessity  of  submission,  will  be  found  equally  impotent 
to  convince,  or  to  enslave  your  fellow-subjects  in  America,  who  feel 
that  tyranny,  whether  ambitioned  by  an  individual  part  of  the 
legislature,  or  the  bodies  who  composed  it,  is  equally  intolerable  to 
British  subjects."  He  then  drew  a  picture  of  the  condition  of  the 
troops  in  Boston,  suffering  from  the  inclemencies  of  winter,  despised 
and  insulted  by  the  inhabitants,  wasting  with  sickness,  and  pining 
for  action,  and  pronounced  them,  "  an  army  of  impotence  and  con 
tempt;  and,  to  make  the  folly  equal  to  the  disgrace,  they  are  an 
army  of  irritation  and  vexation."  Then,  with  bitter  scorn,  he  said, 
"I  find  a  report  creeping  abroad,  that  ministers  censure  General 
Gage's  inactivity:  let  them  censure  him — it  becomes  them — it 
becomes  their  justice  and  honor.  I  mean  not  to  censure  his  inac 
tivity  ;  it  is  a  prudent  and  necessary  inaction.  But  it  is  a  miserable 
condition,  where  disgrace  is  prudence,  and  where  it  is  necessary  to 
be  contemptible." 

"  But  our  ministers  say,"  he  continued,  "  the  Americans  must  not 
be  heard.  They  have  been  condemned  unheard.  The  indiscrimi 
nate  hand  of  vengeance  has  lumped  together  innocent  and  guilty; 
with  all  the  formalities  of  law,  has  blocked  up  the  town  of  Boston, 
and  reduced  to  beggary  and  famine  thirty  thousand  inhabitants. 
But  his  majesty  is  advised,  that  the  union  in  America  can  not  last ! 
Ministers  have  more  eyes  than  I,  and  ought  to  have  more  ears ;  but 
with  all  the  information  I  have  been  able  to  procure,  I  can  pro 
nounce  it  an  union,  solid,  permanent,  and  effectual.  If  illegal  vio 
lences  have  been,  as  it  is  said,  committed  in  America,  prepare  the 
way,  open  the  door  of  possibility  for  acknowledgment  and  satis 
faction.  But  proceed  not  to  such  coercion,  such  proscription ;  cease 


JET.  43.]  SPEECH  OF  CHATHAM.  491 

your  indiscriminate  inflictions ;  amerce  not  thirty  thousand  ;  oppress 
not  three  millions  for  the  fault  of  forty  individuals.  Such  severity 
of  injustice  must  for  ever  render  incurable  the  wounds  you  have 
already  given  your  colonies.  You  irritate  them  to  unappeasable 
rancor.  What  though  you  march  from  town  to  town,  and  from 
province  to  province ;  though  you  should  be  able  to  enforce  a 
temporary  and  local  submission,  which  I  only  suppose,  not  admit 
—  how  shall  you  be  able  to  secure  the  obedience  of  the  country 
you  leave  behind  you  in  your  progress,  to  grasp  the  dominion  of 
eighteen  hundred  miles  of  continent,  populous  in  numbers,  posses 
sing  valor,  liberty,  and  resistance? The  spirit  which  now  resists 

your  taxation  in  America,  is  the  same  which  formerly  opposed 
loans,  benevolences,  and  ship-money,  in  England ;  the  same  spirit 
which  called  all  England  on  its  legs,  and  by  the  bill  of  rights  vin 
dicated  the  English  constitution :  the  same  spirit  which  established 
the  great  fundamental,  essential  maxim  of  your  liberties,  that  no 
subject  of  England  shall  be  taxed  hit  ly  his  own  consent.  This  glorious 
spirit  animates  three  millions  in  America,  who  prefer  poverty  with 
liberty,  to  gilded  chains  and  sordid  affluence,  and  who  will  die  in 
defence  of  their  rights  as  men,  as  freemen." 

After  speaking  of  the  members  of  the  continental  Congress  and 
their  acts,  in  those  noble  words  that  we  have  quoted  in  a  former 
chapter,  the  earl  continued :  "  I  trust  it  is  obvious  to  your  lordships, 
that  all  attempts  to  impose  servitude  upon  such  men,  to  establish 
despotism  over  such  a  mighty  continental  nation,  must  be  vain, 
must  be  fatal.  We  shall  be  forced  ultimately  to  retract;  let  us 
retract  while  we  can,  not  when  we  must"  " To  conclude,  my  lords," 
he  said,  "  if  the  ministers  thus  persevere  in  misadvising  and  mis 
leading  the  king,  I  will  not  say  that  they  can  alienate  the  affections 
of  his  subjects  from  his  crown ;  but  I  will  affirm,  that  they  ivill  make 
the  croivn  not  worth  his  wearing.  I  will  not  say  that  the  king  is  be 
trayed  ;  but  I  will  pronounce  that  the  kingdom  is  undone."* 

Such  are  some  of  the  most  salient  points  in  that  great  speech — 
a  speech  which  had  not  the  desired  effect  upon  the  obdurate  house 

*  Boyd's  Report,  published  by  Dodsley,  in  1779 


492  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  lords,  but  caused  a  profound  sensation  out  of  doors.  Keferring 
to  it,  in  a  letter  to  Lord  Stanhope,  Franklin  said  he  had  seen,  in  the 
course  of  his  life,  sometimes  eloquence  without  wisdom,  and  often 
wisdom  without  eloquence ;  but,  in  the  present  instance,  he  had 
seen  both  united,  and  both,  as  he  thought,  in  the  highest  degree 
possible.  The  ministry  felt  it  keenly.  They  "  were  violent  beyond 
expectation,  almost  to  madness.  Instead  of  recalling  the  troops 
now  there,  they  talked  of  sending  more."* 

Chatham  was  ably  supported  by  Lords  Shelburne,  Camden,  Bock- 
ingham,  and  Richmond.  They  were  answered  by  Lord  Suffolk, 
in  a  weak  speech,  and  by  others ;  and  when  the  vote  was  taken  on 
Chatham's  proposition  for  an  address,  it  was  rejected  by  sixty-eight 
to  eighteen.  But  the  earl  was  not  discouraged  by  defeat.  He  was 
superior  to  such  emotions,  and  on  the  first  of  February,  be  pre 
sented  a  bill  containing  a  plan,  which  he  had  submitted  to  Doctor 
Franklin,  for  the  settlement  of  troubles  in  America.^  It  proposed 
to  renounce  the  power  of  taxation,  but  to  call  upon  Congress  to 
acknowledge  the  supreme  legislative  power  of  Great  Britain,  and 
invite  them  to  make  a  free  grant  of  a  certain  annual  revenue  to  be 
employed  in  meeting  the  charge  on  the  national  debt.  This  being 
effected,  it  proposed  an  immediate  repeal  of  the  ten  obnoxious 
acts,J  of  which  the  colonists  complained.  This  proposition  was 
received  with  great  coldness,  and  hardly  obtained  a  superficial 
examination  of  its  merits.  Lord  Dartmouth,  the  colonial  secretary, 


*  William  Pitt  (son  of  the  earl  of  Chatham),  to  his  mother. 

t  Doctor  Franklin,  in  his  "Memoirs,"  has  given  an  interesting  account  of  his  interview  with 
Chatham,  at  his  country-seat,  at  Hayes.  He  gave  Franklin  an  outline  of  his  plan,  and  read  portions 
of  it  to  him.  He  told  the  sage,  that  though  he  had  studied  and  considered  the  American  business 
thoroughly,  in  all  its  parts,  he  was  not  so  confident  of  his  own  judgment ;  hut  that  he  came  to  set  it 
right  by  his,  "  as  men  set  their  watches  by  a  regulator,"  The  fact  that  Franklin  had  been  at  Hayes, 
at  that  time,  leaked  out,  and  in  the  course  of  the  debate  upon  the  plan,  the  earl  of  Sandwich  insin 
uated  that  it  was  not  the  mind  and  hand  of  Chatham,  but  of  Doctor  Franklin  that  had  conceived 
and  framed  it.  In  reply  to  this  insinuation,  Chatham  complimented  Franklin  very  highly,  as  "one, 
he  was  pleased  to  say,  whom  all  Europe  held  in  high  estimation,  for  his  knowledge  and  wisdom, 
and  ranked  with  our  Boyles  and  Newtons ;  who  was  an  honor,  not  to  the  English  nation  only,  but 
to  human  nature  !" 

}  These  were  the  Sugar  Act,  the  two  Quartering  Acts,  the  Tea  Act,  the  Act  suspending  the  New 
York  Legislature,  the  two  Acts  for  the  Trial  in  Great  Britain  of  Offences  committed  in  America, 
the  Boston  Port-Bill,  the  Act  for  regulating  the  General  Government  of  Massachusetts,  and  the 
Quebec  Act. 


/Ex.  43.]  STUBBORNNESS  OF  THE  MINISTRY.  493 

moved  to  lay  it  upon  the  table,  but  the  proposition  was  condemned 
by  other  members.  After  a  warm  debate.,  during  which  the  earl  of 
Sandwich,  a  violent  partisan  of  the  crown,  moved  the  "  rejection  of 
the  bill,  now  and  for  ever,"  it  was  negatived  by  sixty-one  against 
thirty-two.  Such  a  hurried  rejection  of  a  plan  so  wise  and  con 
ciliatory,  and  arranged  by  one  so  capable  and  exalted  —  a  noble 
servant  of  his  country  in  the  hour  of  its  greatest  need — afterward 
drew  from  Lord  Camden,  the  most  bitter  reproaches.  "  Obliterate 
the  transaction  from  your  records,"  he  said;  "let  not  posterity 
know  it."  And  the  thinking  men — the  wise  and  practical  men  of 
England — warmly  thanked  the  earl  of  Chatham  for  proffering  this 
olive-branch  to  ministerial  hands,  that  they  might  hold  it  out  to  the 
colonists.  The  corporation  of  London  honored  him  with  a  vote  of 
thanks,  and  a  similar  compliment  was  bestowed  upon  his  colleagues 
who  supported  him.  The  plan  had  the  hearty  approval  of  Franklin, 
and  he  sent  forth  an  address  to  the  people  of  England,  and  to  his 
own  countrymen,  in  which  he  portrayed  the  wickedness  of  rejecting 
this  plan  of  reconciliation,  the  only  one  that  had  been  offered  for 
years. 

But  these  things  had  no  effect  upon  the  king  and  his  advisers, 
except  to  make  them  more  stubborn  or  stupid.  Governed  by  the 
ethics  of  the  lion  (without  his  magnanimity),  "might  makes  right," 
the  ministry  followed  their  foolish  rejection  of  the  pacification  plan, 
by  proposing  measures  tantamount  to  an  actual  declaration  of  war 
upon  the  American  colonists,  as  rebels. 

On  the  twenty-ninth  of  January,  Franklin,  Bollan,  and  Lee,  colo 
nial  agents  in  England,  had  presented  a  petition,  praying  to  be  exam 
ined  at  the  bar  of  the  house  of  commons,  in  support  of  the  demands 
of  the  general  Congress.  Their  prayer  was  denied,  on  the  plea  that 
such  permission  would  appear  like  a  sanction  of  the  acts  of  an  ille 
gal  body,  as  ministers  denominated  Congress ;  and  on  the  second  of 
February,  Lord  North  proposed  the  first  of  a  series  of  measures, 
designed  to  coerce  the  colonies  into  passive  obedience.  He  moved 
in  the  commons,  in  committee  of  the  whole,  for  an  address  to  the 
king,  thanking  him  for  the  presentation  of  the  numerous  documents 


494  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

from  America;  affirming  that  the  province  of  Massachusetts  had 
been,  and  was,  in  a  state  of  rebellion ;  that  the  house  was  resolved 
never  to  relinquish  any  part  of  the  sovereign  authority ;  and  pro 
fessing  their  readiness  to  listen  to  petitions  and  redress  grievances, 
when  the  subjects  were  brought  before  them  in  a  dutiful  and  con 
stitutional  manner.  They  also  urged  his  majesty  to  take  effectual 
measures  for  enforcing  obedience  to  the  laws;  and  then  followed 
the  usual  resolution  to  support  him  with  their  "  lives  and  fortunes." 

In  his  speech  on  the  proposed  address,  Lord  North  distinctly 
foreshadowed  the  nature  of  the  coercive  measures  which  ministers, 
in  council,  had  determined  to  enforce.  A  part  of  the  scheme  was 
to  materially  increase  the  military  force  in  America,  and  to  restrain 
the  entire  commerce  of  New  England,  with  Great  Britain,  Ireland, 
and  the  West  Indies,  and  the  fisheries  on  the  banks  of  Newfound 
land,  until  the  colonists  should  become  dutiful  according  to  pre 
scription.  Charles  James  Fox,  a  young  and  eloquent  member  of 
the  house  of  commons,  who  had  been  dismissed  from  office,  and 
was  now  one  of  the  most  dangerous  opponents  of  government, 
moved  an  amendment,  censuring  the  ministry,  and  praying  for 
their  removal.  Dunning  denied  the  existence  of  rebellion  in  the 
colonies,  and  wras  ably  answered  by  the  great  Thurlow.  Others 
engaged  in  the  debate,  and  it  became  very  stormy.  Fox's  amend 
ment  was  rejected  by  a  large  majority,  and  North's  original  motion 
for  an  address  was  carried  by  an  equally  large  vote. 

When,  on  the  sixteenth  of  February,  the  address  was  reported 
by  a  committee  appointed  to  prepare  it,  there  was  another  warm 
debate,  in  which  John  Wilkes,  editor  of  the  "  North  Briton,"  who 
had  given  the  government  a  world  of  trouble  during  a  portion  of 
the  first  eight  years  of  the  reign  of  George  the  Third,  took  a 
conspicuous  part  in  favor  of  the  Americans.  He  declared  that  a 
proper  resistance  to  wrong  was  revolution,  not  rebellion,  and  intimated, 
prophetically,  that  if  the  Americans  should  be  successful  in  the 
impending  struggle,  they  might,  in  after-times,  celebrate  the  revo 
lution  of  1775,  as  the  English  did  that  of  1688.  Earnest  recom 
mendations  to  pursue  milder  measures  were  offered  by  the  opposi- 


Mr.  43.]          COERCIVE  MEASURES  ADOPTED.  495 

tion,  but  without  effect.  The  ministry  refused  to  modify  a  single 
harsh  feature  of  the  proposition,  which  was,  in  fact,  an  extension 
of  the  penalties  of  the  Boston  port-bill  from  one  city  to  four  prov 
inces,  and  the  address,  as  reported,  was  carried  by  a  large  majority 
— nearly  four  to  one. 

The  king,  in  reply  to  the  address,  assured  Parliament  that  he 
would  take  the  most  speedy  and  effectual  measures  to  secure  obedi 
ence  to  the  laws ;  that  he  was  ready  to  extend  just  and  reasonable 
indulgence  to  any  truly  repenting  colony ;  and  concluded  with  an 
expressed  wish  that  the  disposition  which  he  manifested  would 
have  a  good  effect  upon  the  temper  and  conduct  of  the  Americans. 
The  king  also  sent  a  message  to  the  commons,  informing  them  that 
it  would  be  necessary  to  augment  the  naval  and  military  forces  in 
America,  in  order  to  enable  them  to  act  in  accordance  with  the 
spirit  of  their  address. 

A  violent  debate  arose  on  the  reception  of  these  documents ; 
and  it  was  finally  voted,  that  two  thousand  additional  seamen,  and 
fourteen  hundred  soldiers,  should  be  sent  to  America.  Gibbon, 
the  historian,  who  was  then  a  member  of  the  house  of  commons, 
wrote  to  his  friend  Sheffield,  on  that  occasion :  u  We  voted  an 
address  of  lives  and  fortunes,  declaring  Massachusetts  bay  in  a  state 
of  rebellion ;  more  troops,  but,  I  fear,  not  enough,  go  to  America, 
to  make  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men  at  Boston ;  three  generals, 
Howe,  Burgoyne,  and  Clinton !  In  a  few  days  we  stop  the  ports 
of  New  England.  I  can  not  write  volumes,  but  I  am  more  and 
more  convinced  that,  with  firmness,  all  may  go  well,  yet  I  sometimes 
doubtr* 

*  Gibbon  was  a  vacillating  politician,  and  his  parliamentary  career  did  not  entitle  him  to  any 
laurels.  Bailey,  in  his  "Records  of  Patriotism  and  Love  of  Country/'  page  169,  says,  that  Gibbon 
was  very  much  disposed  to  take  sides  with  the  Americans  ;  and  at  Brooke's  Coffeehouse,  had  pub 
licly  said,  that  "  there  was  no  salvation  for  England,  unless  six  of  the  heads  of  the  cabinet  council 
were  cut  off,  and  laid  upon  the  tables  of  the  houses  of  Parliament  as  examples."  Gibbon  appears 
to  have  had  his  price,  for  within  a  fortnight  after  making  this  expression,  he  took  office  under  that 
same  cabinet  council,  with  a  liberal  salary  and  promise  of  a  pension,  and  became  silent.  This  fact 
was  the  occasion  of  the  following  poem,  attributed  to  the  pen  of  Fox  : — 

"King  George  in  a  fright,  lest  Gibbon  should  write 

The  story  of  Britain's  disgrace, 
Thought  no  means  more  sure,  his  pen  to  secure, 
Than  to  give  the  historian  a  place 


496  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

On  the  tenth  of  February,  Lord  North,  pursuant  to  the  intima 
tions  in  his  speech  on  the  motion  for  an  address,  brought  forward  a 
bill,  which  provided  for  the  destruction  of  the  entire  trade  of  New 
England,  and  at  one  sweep  of  the  pen  of  the  king  in  signing  it,  to 
paralyze  the  operations  of  four  hundred  ships,  two  thousand  fishing 
shallops,  and  twenty  thousand  seamen,  then  employed  in  the  British 
fisheries  on  the  banks  of  Newfoundland.  The  bill  had  a  clause, 
excepting  those  individuals  from  the  blow  who  should  produce  a 
certificate  from  their  respective  governors  testifying  to  their  gen 
eral  good  conduct,  and  who  should  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of 
the  British  Parliament.  This,  like  similar  measures,  awakened  a 
stormy  debate.  Ministers  represented  it  as  a  just  and  wise  punish 
ment  of  the  Americans  for  their  rebellious  proceedings,  and  only  a 
fair  retaliation  of  a  similar  course  which  Congress  had  adopted. 
The  opposition  denounced  it  as  cruel,  unjust,  tyrannical,  and  un 
necessary.  The  merchants  of  London  presented  an  earnest  remon 
strance  against  it,  because  the  people  of  New  England  were,  at  that 
time,  indebted  to  them  nearly  five  millions  of  dollars,  nearly  all  of 
which  must  be  lost  in  the  event  of  such  a  blow  to  their  trade  and 
industry  being  given.  But  the  stubborn  king  and  ministry  would 
listen  to  no  softening  propositions,  and  the  venal  Parliament  adopted 
the  bill,  by  a  large  majority  in  both  houses. 

At  this  juncture,  fresh  intelligence  arrived  from  America,  repre 
senting  the  general  adhesion  of  the  colonists  to  the  continental 
Congress  and  its  important  measures;  and  another  bill  (the  sub 
stance  of  which  had  been  embodied  in  an  amendment  made  by  the 
house  of  lords  and  withdrawn),  was  speedily  passed,  for  restraining 
all  the  other  colonies  from  commercial  operations,  except  the  more 
loyal  sisters,  New  York  and  North  Carolina.  On  the  thirtieth  of 
March,  both  bills  received  the  royal  signature  and  became  laws. 

But  his  caution  is  vain,  't  is  the  curse  of  his  reign 

That  his  projects  should  never  succeed; 
Though  he  write  not  a  line,  yet  a  cause  of  decline 

In  the  author's  example  we  read. 
His  book  well  describes,  how  corruption  and  bribes 

Overthrew  the  great  empire  of  Rome ; 
And  his  writings  declare  a  degen'racy  there, 

Which  his  conduct  exhibits  at  home." 


vEx.  43.]  NORTH'S  CONCILIATORY  BILL.  497 

While  these  restraining  acts  were  under  consideration.  Lord 
North  had  astonished  all  parties,  and  "seemed  for  a  time  almost  to 
dissolve  his  own,"  by  bringing  forward,  on  the  twentieth  of  Feb 
ruary,  in  committee  of  the  whole  house,  what  he  called  a  concilia 
tory  bill.  It  proposed,  that  when  the  proper  authorities,  in  any 
colony,  should  offer,  besides  maintaining  its  own  civil  government, 
to  raise  a  certain  revenue  and  place  it  at  the  disposition  of  Parlia 
ment,  it  would  be  proper  to  forbear  imposing  any  tax,  except  for 
the  regulation  of  commerce.  North  made  a  long  speech  in  favor 
of  the  proposition,  to  a  very  full  house.  "  At  first  the  court  party 
looked  at  each  other  with  amazement,  and  seemed  at  a  loss  in  what 
light  to  consider  the  motion,  and  the  prime-minister  who  made  it."* 
Then  that  party  opposed  it,  because  it  was  too  conciliatory,  and  the 
opposition  were  dissatisfied  with  it,  because  it  proposed  to  abate  but 
a  single  grievance,  and  was  not  specific.  "It  is  a  mere  verbiage, 
a  most  puerile  mockery,"  wrote  the  earl  of  Chatham,  who  was  con 
fined  with  gout  at  Hayes,  "  that  will  be  spurned  in  America,  as  well 
as  laughed  at  here  by  the  friends  of  America,  and  by  the  unrelent 
ing  enemies  of  that  noble  country.  Everything  but  justice  and 
reason  will,  I  am  persuaded,  prove  vain  to  men  like  the  Americans, 
with  principles  of  right  in  their  minds  and  hearts,  and  with  arms  in 
their  hands  to  assert  those  principles."")- 

To  his  great  astonishment,  Lord  North  found  himself  in  the 
midst  of  a  cross-fire  from  both  parties.  "  He  was,  in  the  beginning," 
wrote  Chatham  the  next  day,  "like  a  man  exploded,  and  the  judg 
ment  of  the  house,  during  about  two  hours,  was  that  his  lordship 
was  going  to  be  in  a  considerable  minority."!  But  he  stood  his 
ground  well,  and  adroitly  carried  his  proposition  through.  Al 
though  the  minister  acknowledged  that  his  proposition  was  really  a 
cheat,  with  a  fair  exterior,  and  was  intended  to  sow  divisions  and 
dissensions  in  the  councils  of  the  colonists,  heedless  and  ignorant 
members  of  Parliament  gave  it  their  support,  and  the  bill  was 
passed  by  the  large  majority  of  two  hundred  and  seventy-four  to 

*  "Pictorial  History  of  England,"  reign  of  George  the  Third,  i.,  205. 

t  Chatham  to  Viscount  Mahon  (son  of  Lord  Stanhope),  February  20,  1775. 

t  Letter  to  the  countess  of  Chatham,  in  "  Chatham's  Correspondence,"  iv.,  403. 


498  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

eighty-eight*  Colonel  Barre,  ever  the  stanch  friend  of  the  col 
onists,  justly  denounced  the  scheme  in  unmeasured  terms,  as  low, 
shameful,  abominable — an  attempt  to  dissolve  that  generous  union 
which  made  the  Americans  as  one  man  in  the  defence  of  the  rights 
of  British  subjects — a  scheme  to  cause  the  colonists  to  reject  a 
proffered  conciliation,  and  thus  to  draw  down  upon  their  heads 
tenfold  vengeance  that  should  have  the  appearance  of  justice ! 

Two  days  afterward,  Edmund  Burke,  who  had  eloquently  op 
posed  the  scheme  of  Lord  North,  presented  a  series  of  thirteen 
conciliatory  resolutions,  and  prefaced  them  with  one  of  his  most 
admired  speeches.  "The  proposition,"  he  said,  "is  peace.  Not 
peace  through  the  medium  of  war ;  not  peace  to  be  hunted  through 
the  labyrinth  of  intricate  and  endless  negotiations;  not  peace  to 
arise  out  of  universal  discord,  fomented  from  principles,  in  all  parts 
of  the  empire ;  not  peace  to  depend  on  the  periodical  determina 
tion  of  perplexing  questions,  or  the  precise  marking  the  shadowy 
boundaries  of  a  complex  government.  It  is  simple  peace  ;  sought  in 
its  natural  course,  and  in  its  ordinary  haunts.  It  is  peace,  sought  in 
the  spirit  of  peace ;  and  laid  in  principles  purely  pacific.  I  propose, 
by  removing  the  ground  of  the  difference,  and  by  restoring  the 
former  unsuspecting  confidence  of  the  colonies  in  the  mother-country,  to 
give  permanent  satisfaction  to  your  people  ;  and  (far  from  a  scheme 
of  ruling  by  discord)  to  reconcile  them  to  each  other  in  the  same 
act,  and  by  the  bond  of  the  very  same  interest  which  reconciles 
them  to  the  British  government.  My  idea  is  nothing  more." 
Burke's  efforts  were  of  no  avail.  His  resolutions  were  rejected  by 


*  This  proposition  no  doubt  originated  in  the  effect  of  Chatham's  conciliatory  plan,  and  the 
seeming  willingness  of  Doctor  Franklin  to  agree  to  some  measure  of  mutual  forbearance.  To  his 
surprise,  Franklin,  after  the  failure  of  Chatham's  plan,  received  some  indirect  intimations  that  con 
ciliatory  measures  were  desired  by  the  ministry.  Several  weeks  before,  he  had  been  approached 
with  questions,  as  to  the  real  intentions  and  wishes  of  the  Americans,  while  spending  a  portion  of  a 
day  with  Miss  Howe,  sister  of  Lord  Howe,  who  hoped  that  he  would  be  incautious  and  reveal  some 
thing,  while  playing  chess,  drinking  wine,  and  indulging  in  social  pleasures.  But  he  lost  neither 
his  wit  nor  his  wisdom.  Afterward  Franklin  had  several  interviews,  at  the  house  of  that  lady,  with 
her  brother,  the  admiral,  who  stood  high  in  the  confidence  of  the  cabinet.  Other  friends  of  the 
ministry  held  several  earnest  conversations  with  Franklin  on  the  subject  of  a  paper  of  "Hints," 
which  the  diplomat  had  drawn  up,  tending  to  an  adjustment  of  the  difficulties.  But  it  was  found 
impossible  to  agree  with  him  upon  terms  of  accommodation,  and  Lord  North,  without  previous 
notice,  brought  forward  his  plan,  above  mentioned. 


JE-r.  43.]  THOUGHTS  OF  RECONCILIATION  ABANDONED.  499 

a  large  vote.  On  the  twenty-seventh,  David  Hartley  presented  a 
scheme  similar  to  that  of  the  earl  of  Chatham's.  It  was  negatived 
without  a  division.  The  u  lord-mayor,  aldermen,  and  livery  of  Lon 
don,"  urged  by  the  merchants,  who  were  smarting  under  the  effects 
of  the  lash  applied  to  the  Americans,  addressed  the  king  in  con 
demnation  of  the  late  measures  toward  the  colonies.  They  were 
sternly  rebuked  by  his  majesty,  who  expressed  his  astonishment 
that  any  of  his  subjects  should  presume  to  be  abettors  of  rebels. 

It  was  now  evident  that  the  king,  his  ministers,  and  the  Parlia 
ment,  were  bent  on  making  the  Americans  abject  slaves,  or  driving 
them  into  armed  rebellion.  The  acts  of  Parliament,  sanctioned, 
and  made  puissant  by  the  signature  of  the  king,  proclaimed  the 
colonists  to  be  rebels,  and  fleets  and  armies  were  prepared  to  sub 
jugate  them.  The  colonists,  united  and  firm,  had  planted  their 
feet  immoveably  upon  the  solid  rock  of  justice ;  and  appealing  to 
Heaven  as  witness  of  the  purity  of  their  intentions,  and  the  righi> 
eousness  of  their  cause,  they  banished  all  thoughts  of  reconciliation 
with  Great  Britain,  because  they  saw  no  hope  of  such  a  consumma 
tion,  with  honor.  For  ten  years  they  had  complained  of  wrongs, 
petitioned  for  redress,  and  suffered  insults.  Forbearance  was  no 
longer  a  virtue ;  and  when  the  buds  began  to  burst  in  the  spring  of 
1775,  they  turned  their  backs  upon  the  unnatural  mother,  resolved 
to  leave  the  roof  of  their  childhood  for  ever,  rather  than  remain 
bond-slaves  in  the  household  of  British  subjects. 


500  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTEE   XLV. 

SECRET    MINISTERIAL  ORDERS PROCEEDINGS  IN  CHARLESTON FERMENT  IN  NEW 

ENGLAND BRITISH  BOASTERS RESTIFFNESS  OF  THE  COLONISTS ARMED  RE 
SISTANCE  AT  SALEM A  FARCE PARLIAMENTARY  PROCEEDINGS  KNOWN PRO 
VINCIAL  CONGRESS  OF  MASSACHUSETTS  AT  WORK EXPEDITION  TO  CONCORD 

ITS  DISCOVERY THE  PEOPLE  AROUSED GATHERING  OF  THE  MINUTE-MEN 

SKIRMISH  AT  LEXINGTON EVENTS    AT    CONCORD RETREAT    OF  THE   INVADERS 

REINFORCEMENTS FLIGHT  TOWARD  BOSTON TRIUMPH  OF  THE  YEOMANRY 

RESULT    OF    THE    DAY'S    WORK ACTION     OF    THE     MASSACHUSETTS     PROVINCIAL 

CONGRESS THE  NEWS  IN  LONDON DARTMOUTH  AND  LEE. 

WHEN  the  British  ministry  were  strengthened  by  Parliament  in 
their  preparations  for  crushing  the  rising  rebellion  in  America,  they 
sent  secret  orders  to  the  royal  governors,  to  seize  the  arms  and 
ammunition  belonging  to  the  several  provinces ;  to  raise  provincial 
troops,  if  possible ;  and  to  prepare  for  the  reception  of  an  army  of 
British  regulars  to  aid  them.  Suspicions  of  such  orders  had  been 
communicated  by  Americans  in  London  to  their  friends  here,  but  it 
was  not  until  after  the  skirmishes  at  Lexington  and  Concord,  that 
the  fact  was  positively  known.  On  that  very  day,  the  packet-ship 
Svmllow  arrived  at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  with  despatches  for 
the  southern  governors.  The  fact  that  General  Gage  had  attempted 
the  seizure  of  stores  at  Salem,  had  already  been  communicated  to 
the  vigilant  patriots  of  Charleston,  and  a  secret  committee*  had 
been  appointed,  to  demand  from  the  postmaster  the  next  mail  that 
should  arrive  from  England,  that  they  might  intercept  communi 
cations  for  Bull,  the  acting-governor.  The  committee  performed 
their  duty  well,  and  the  mails  of  the  Siualkiv  were  subjected  to 
their  scrutiny.  All  private  letters  were  left  untouched,  but  those 
for  the  governor  were  opened.  These  revealed  the  hostile  designs 

*  It  consisted  of  William  Henry  Drayton,  John  Neufville,  and  Thomas  Corbett. 


JE-r.  43.]  PREPARATIONS  FOR  WAR.  501 

of  the  ministry,  and  the  papers  were  immediately  sent  by  a  mes 
senger  to  the  continental  Congress,  which  assembled  at  Philadelphia 
twenty-one  days  afterward. 

During  the  winter  and  early  spring  of  1775,  the  inhabitants  of 
New  England,  and  especially  of  Massachusetts,  were  in  a  state  of 
continual  feverish  excitement.  They  felt  the  chill  and  shadows  of 
the  clouds  of  a  fearful  storm  gathering  in  the  firmament  above 
them,  and  they  knew  not  at  what  moment  the  herald  thunder-peal 
might  awaken  them  to  brave  it.  The  provincial  Congress  worked 
nobly  and  fearlessly.  They  had  the  confidence  of  the  people,  and 
their  recommendations  went  out  with  all  the  force  of  law.  They 
ordered  the  purchase  of  ammunition  and  stores  for  an  army  of 
fifteen  thousand  men,  and  it  was  done.  They  called  upon  the  con 
gregational  clergy  to  preach  liberty  from  their  pulpits ;  and  hearty 
responses  were  given.  The  towns  freely  voted  money  to  arm, 
equip,  and  discipline  "  alarm  list  companies ;"  and  in  these  ranks 
citizens  of  every  calling  and  social  position  were  to  be  seen.  They 
had  heard  of  the  boast  of  a  British  officer  in  Boston,  that  all  this 
preparation  was  "mere  bullying,  and  would  go  no  further  than 
words,  whenever  it  should  come  to  blows ;"  and  they  prepared  to 
show  their  traducer,  who  said  that  "  any  two  regiments  here  ought 
to  be  decimated,  if  they  did  not  beat,  in  the  field,  the  whole  force 
of  the  Massachusetts  province,"  that  he  was  a  wicked  and  deceitful 
prophet.  They  were  prepared  to  show  Colonel  Grant  (the  boastful 
military  coxcomb  who  led  the  Virginians  into  such  disasters  by  his 
foolish  bravado  before  Fort  Duquesne,  in  1758,  and  who  had  re 
cently  tickled  the  ministerial  members  of  Parliament  with  stories 
of  the  cowardice  of  the  colonists,  and  the  assurance,  that  with  five 
regiments  he  might  march  unharmed  through  all  America !)  that  he 
was  a  shameless  and  ungrateful  braggart,  and  beneath  even  that 
silent  contempt  with  which  the  great  Chatham  treated  him  when 
these  words  were  uttered. 

Vigilance — suspicious,  sleepless  vigilance — was  everywhere  seen 
and  felt.  With  eagle  eye  and  vulture  scent,  it  detected  every 
secret  hostile  movement  of  the  foe ;  and  so  well  were  the  patriots 


502  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

prepared  for  the  struggle,  that  the  knowledge  that  an  army  of  four 
thousand  disciplined  soldiers — a  tiger  chained  and  thirsting  for 
blood  —  was  waiting  upon  the  peninsula  of  Boston  for  orders  to 
desolate  the  land,  did  not  make  them  falter.  Indeed,  they  were 
eager  to  measure  strength  with  the  oppressors ;  and  had  the  coun 
sels  of  inflamed  zeal  and  passion  prevailed,  blood  would  have  flowed 
even  before  the  close  of  1774.  But  cool  dignity  bore  supreme 
rule ;  and  while  the  patriots  were  fully  determined  to  strike  back 
when  smitten,  they  were  also  determined  to  allow  the  imperial 
government  to  bear  the  odium  of  having  given  the  aggressive  blow. 
Salem  was  the  first  theatre  of  armed  resistance.  Late  in  Feb 
ruary,  General  Gage  discovered  that  arms  and  ammunition  were 
being  secretly  conveyed  out  of  Boston,  in  the  wagons  and  carts  of 
country  people,  who  concealed  them  beneath  loads  of  other  things. 
At  about  the  same  time,  he  heard  that  some  brass  cannon  and  other 
munitions  of  war  were  at  Salem,  and  he  sent  a  detachment  of 
troops,  under  Colonel  Leslie,  by  the  way  of  Marblehead,  to  seize 
them.  It  was  Sunday.  Intelligence  of  the  landing  of  the  British 
troops  came  to  Salem  during  service-time.  The  people  were  imme 
diately  dismissed;  and,  led  by  Colonel  Timothy  Pickering,  they 
confronted  the  British  at  a  draw-bridge.  A  parley  ensued,  and  a 
compromise  was  effected.  Leslie  was  allowed  to  march  over  the 
bridge  and  back  again,  unmolested  and  unmolesting ;  and  he  wisely 
forebore  to  lay  hands  upon  anything  belonging  to  the  people.  It 
was  the  first  repulse  of  British  troops,  by  the  armed  minute-men, 
bloodless  but  effectual,  and  drew  from  a  poet  of  the  time  those 
words  of  bitter  satire  : — 

"  Through  Salem  straight,  without  delay, 
The  bold  battalion  took  its  way , 
Marched  o'er  a  bridge,  in  open  sight 
Of  several  Yankees  armed  for  fight ; 
Then,  without  loss  of  time  or  men, 
Veered  round  for  Boston  back  again, 
And  found  so  well  their  projects  thrive, 
That  every  soul  got  back  alive  !"* 

*  "McFingal,  nn  Epic  Poem,"  by  John  Trumbull. 


MT.  43.]  PROVINCIAL  ARMY.  503 

A  few  weeks  later,  and  blood  actually  flowed.  The  insolence  of 
the  troops  daily  increased.  Parties  of  them  occasionally  marched 
into  the  country  a  few  miles.  The  people,  irritated  and  restless, 
were  insulted  by  them;  and  everything  calculated  to  hasten  a 
collision,  was  seen  and  felt.  Meanwhile  the  committee  of  safety 
collected  a  large  amount  of  stores  at  Concord.  Couriers  were 
engaged  in  Charlestown,  Cambridge,  and  Roxbury,  to  alarm  the 
country,  when  necessary,  and  every  suspected  man  from  Boston 
was  narrowly  watched. 

Intelligence  of  the  proceedings  in  Parliament  soon  came.  On 
the  fourth  of  April,  the  gazettes  of  Boston  announced,  that  rein 
forcements  were  on  their  way,  and  that  "the  most  speedy  and 
effectual  measures"  to  put  down  the  rebellion,  had  been  set  in 
motion  by  the  government.  On  the  following  day  the  provincial 
Congress  adopted  rules  and  regulations  for  the  establishment  of  an 
army.  On  the  seventh  they  sent  a  circular  to  the  committees  of  cor 
respondence  throughout  the  province,  recommending  them  to  have 
the  minute-men  in  order.  On  the  eighth  it  was  resolved  to  raise 
an  army  and  ask  the  co-operation  of  the  other  New  England  colo 
nies.  And  so,  day  after  day,  that  body  of  patriots  worked  on  in 
making  military  preparations,  without  any  attempt  at  concealment ; 
while  Gage,  pursuant  to  instructions  from  the  ministry,  was  pre 
paring  to  deprive  them  of  the  means  of  resistance,  by  seizing  their 
arms,  ammunition,  and  stores.  Many  patriots  who  apprehended 
arrest,  and  transportation  to  England,  left  Boston ;  but  Doctor 
Warren,  the  bold,  the  brave,  and  the  beloved,  remained,  and  kept 
those  in  the  country  continually  advised  of  every  movement  of  the 
army  and  the  tories  in  the  city. 

On  the  eighteenth  of  April,  General  Gage  ordered  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Smith  and  Major  Pitcairn  to  proceed  with  eight  hundred 
light  infantry  and  grenadiers,  to  seize  the  stores  of  the  patriots  at 
Concord.  Every  preparation  for  the  expedition  was  made  with  the 
utmost  secrecy.  Boats  for  the  transportation  of  the  troops  from 
the  foot  of  Boston  common  to  Lechmere's  point,  were  launched  and 
moored  under  the  sterns  of  the  men-of-war;  and  the  troops  that 


504  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

were  to  march  were  relieved  from  duty  early  in  the  day.  British 
officers  were  also  sent  out  on  the  road  toward  Lexington,  to  prevent 
any  information  of  the  expedition  getting  into  the  country.  At 
sunset,  Gage  issued  orders  that  no  persons  should  leave  the  town 
that  night,  after  eight  o'clock ;  and  at  near  midnight,  when  the  troops 
embarked,  the  British  officers  believed  the  movement  to  be  a  profound 
secret,  unknown  to  all  but  their  own  friends.  But  vigilant  eyes 
were  upon  them.  Dr.  Warren  had  seen  the  preparations ;  and  early 
in  the  evening,  when  well  assured  of  the  destination  of  the  troops, 
he  sent  messengers  to  Samuel  Adams  and  John  Hancock,  who  were 
at  Lexington,  to  apprize  them  of  their  danger,  for  already  orders 
for  their  arrest  had  been  given.  These  messengers  arrived  at  mid 
night,  and  the  people  were  startled  by  the  cry,  "  The  regulars  are 
coming !"  Meanwhile  a  signal  lantern  was  hung  toward  Chaiiestown 
from  one  of  the  windows  of  a  church  in  Boston.  Its  import  was 
understood  by  the  patriots,  and  several  started  immediately  to 
alarm  the  neighboring  inhabitants. 

The  British  troops  marched  cautiously  and  silently  into  the  coun 
try,  and  for  almost  an  hour  they  perceived  no  danger.  But  they 
were  watched  by  sleepless  eyes.  Gerry,  Orne,  and  Lee,  members 
of  the  provincial  Congress,  who  were  at  West  Cambridge,  saw 
them  pass,  and  they  aided  Revere  and  Dawes,  the  messengers  of 
Warren,  in  awakening  the  minute-men.  Suddenly  the  discharge  of 
a  solitary  gun,  and  then  the  sound  of  a  church-bell  fell  ominously 
upon  the  ears  of  the  soldiery.  As  they  approached  Lexington  these 
became  more  frequent,  and  the  British  were  convinced  that  the 
yeomanry  were  rising.  The  moon  was  waning,  and  in  its  pale  light 
solitary  figures  were  seen  hurrying  across  the  fields.  The  minute- 
men  were  in  motion ;  and  at  two  o'clock  in  the  morning,  one 
hundred  and  thirty  of  them  were  collected  upon  the  green  in  front 
of  the  Lexington  meetinghouse,  under  Captain  Parker.  These  all 
retired  from  the  chilly  air,  except  some  sentinels,  to  be  ready  for 
action  at  the  roll  of  the  drum. 

Colonel  Smith  was  alarmed  by  these  movements,  and  sent  a 
messenger  to  General  Gage,  asking  for  reinforcements  immediately. 


.vt  tne  same  time 
will]   orders  to  pi 
;   at   Concr* 
eapt.i>rec<  'several 
Ii*j  was  disco  re  :< 
tiie  alar?n. 

vVfM'M       •• 


both  pgies;  irregular  !.\ 
ifit;;'          the  trained  Brit 
ten  \v-i"v  wounded  on  tJh 
behind    walls  and    \niil 
The  victors  then  for 


Tiie  militia  had  been  ordered  not:  to  pull  a  tr'u'^er 
:pon  by  the  foe,  and  for  a  moment,  sileno-j  arid  hesitation 
M-  neither  party  seemed  villm^  to  become  the  aggresso 

'"ngv'l   ihe  most  wonderful  e\<    .  -    nrorded   iu  tli:1  hi* 
Htion><.   •  But  the  parle}7  with  jinnee  ai» 
xpeiiiency,  was  only  for  a  moment.     Pitr 


tan>,  btoausc  s  orse  aiii] 
p!aci\  TK'»>  testimony  vu'  ! 
Lon^ros-,  shours  conclush  r 
Jinportunt  to  know  who  w; 
sought.— .Sc-j  Jyunmls  >.-i  C 


/ET.  43.]  SKIRMISH  AT  LEXINGTON.  505 

At  the  same  time  he  detached  six  companies,  under  Major  Pitcairn, 
with  orders  to  press  forward  through  Lexington,  and  secure  the 
bridges  at  Concord.  Pitcairn  advanced  with  quick  march,  and 
captured  several  countrymen  on  the  way.  When  near  Lexington 
he  was  discovered  by  a  horseman,  who  dashed  forward  and  gave 
the  alarm.  It  was  now  between  four  and  five  o'clock.  The  bells 
were  rung,  guns  were  fired,  and  drums  were  beaten.  Almost  a 
hundred  of  the  minute-men  appeared  upon  the  green ;  and  when, 
in  the  gray  of  the  early  morning,  they  saw  the  scarlet  uniforms  of 
the  British  soldiers,  and  an  overwhelming  force  approached  and 
halted  near  the  meetinghouse,  they  stood  firm. 

The  militia  had  been  ordered  not  to  pull  a  trigger  until  fired 
upon  by  the  foe,  and  for  a  moment,  silence  and  hesitation  prevailed, 
for  neither  party  seemed  willing  to  become  the  aggressor.  It  was 
a  moment  of  awful  import.  It  was  a  pivot  of  time  upon  wrhich 
hinged  the  most  wonderful  events  recorded  in  the  history  of  the 
nations.  But  the  parley  with  justice  and  prudence,  with  right  and 
expediency,  was  only  for  a  moment.  Pitcairn  and  other  officers 
rode  forward  with  speed,  waving  their  swords  and  shouting,  "  Dis 
perse,  you  villains !  Lay  down  your  arms !  Why  do  n't  you  dis 
perse,  you  rebels  ?  disperse !"  The  minute-men  did  not  move  in 
obedience,  and  the  troops  rushed  forward  to  surround  and  capture 
them.  Great  confusion  now  ensued,  and  a  flash  of  powder  inau 
gurated  the  battles  of  the  REVOLUTION.*  Then  there  was  firing  by 
both  parties ;  irregular  by  the  unskilled  Americans,  but  precise  and 
fatal  by  the  trained  British.  Eight  minute-men  were  killed  and 
ten  were  wounded  on  the  green  and  in  their  retreat  for  security 
behind  walls  and  buildings,  and  the  remainder  were  dispersed. 
The  victors  then  formed  their  line  upon  the  spot  where  blood  first 

*  Both  parties  claimed  the  meed  of  forbearance  on  this  occasion.  Pitcairn  always  maintained 
that  the  first  flash  of  powder  was  in  the  gun  of  a  countryman  behind  a  wall,  and  that  almost  in 
stantly  he  heard  the  report  of  two  or  three  muskets.  He  supposed  these  were  fired  by  the  Ameri 
cans,  because  his  horse  and  a  soldier  near  him  were  wounded.  Then,  he  said,  a  promiscuous  fire  took 
place.  The  testimony  of  many  eye-witnesses,  taken  under  oath,  and  submitted  to  the  continental 
Congress,  shows  conclusively  that  the  British  fired  first.  This  was  a  question  of  great  moment.  It  was 
important  to  know  who  was  the  aggressor,  and,  therefore,  every  kind  of  information  was  eagerly 
sought. — See  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  79. 


506  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

flowed,  fired  a  feu  de  joie  in  a  single  volley,  and  gave  three  cheers ! 
Never  was  a  victory  more  inglorious;  and  never  had  true  men 
greater  reason  for  weeping  because  of  the  necessity  which  com 
pelled  them  to  become  fratricides.  They  should  have  bent  their 
heads  and  dropped  sad  tears  in  silence,  rather  than  uttered  shouts 
of  joy  on  that  glowing  April  morning.* 

Colonel  Smith  reached  the  scene  of  action  just  as  the  skirmish 
had  ended,  and  the  whole  body  of  British  regulars  pushed  on 
toward  Concord,  six  miles  distant.  They  were  in  high  spirits,  for 
they  felt  confident  of  success  in  their  undertaking.  That  con 
fidence  proved  fallacious.  The  whole  country  was  thoroughly 
aroused.  Alarm-bells  had  been  ringing  since  midnight,  for  Revere 
and  Dawes,  tarrying  not  at  Lexington,  had  hurried  on  toward 
Concord  with  the  startling  intelligence,  "  The  regulars  are  coming !" 
They  were  made  prisoners,  but  the  people  were  awakened ;  and 
when  word  came  to  Concord  that  blood  had  been  shed  at  Lexington, 
the  committee  of  safety  and  other  leading  men  had  made  arrange 
ments  for  the  reception  of  the  foe.  Colonel  James  Barrett  was  out 
at  the  head  of  the  gathering  militia ;  and  men,  women,  and  children, 
had  engaged  in  the  toil  of  removing  the  stores  to  a  place  of  con 
cealment  and  safety.  Minute-men  continually  flocked  in  from 
Lincoln  and  other  places,  and  paraded  on  the  common,  under 
Captain  Farrar;  while  some  of  the  militia  marched  down  the  Lex 
ington  road  to  watch  for  the  approach  of  the  regulars. 

At  about  seven  in  the  morning,  the  invaders  appeared  advancing, 
and  the  militiamen  came  flying  back  with  the  intelligence,  that 
their  numbers  were  three  times  greater  than  that  of  the  Americans. 
These,  with  Farrar's  division,  immediately  fell  back  to  an  emi 
nence  about  eighty  rods  from  the  centre  of  the  town,  and  there 

*  In  1799  a  granite  monument,  with  an  appropriate  inscription  on  a  marble  tablet,  was  erected 
upon  the  green  at  Lexington,  where  four  of  the  eight  minute-men  were  killed.  The  inscription 
contains  their  names.  When  the  writer  visited  Lexington,  in  the  autumn  of  1848,  Jonathan  Har 
rington,  who  (then  a  lad  of  seventeen  years)  played  the  fife  for  the  minute-men  on  that  memorable 
morning,  the  nineteenth  of  April,  1775,  was  yet  living,  well  and  sprightly,  at  the  age  of  ninety 
years.  He  died  in  March,  1854.  For  a  portrait  of  Mr.  Harrington,  views  of  the  monuments,  &c., 
at  Lexington  and  Concord,  names  of  those  who  were  slain  at  those  places  and  elsewhere,  on  the  day 
of  the  skirmishes,  and  minute  particulars  of  the  events,  see  the  first  volume  of  Lossing's  "  Pictorial 
Field-Book  of  the  Revolution." 


JF.T.  43.]  FLIGHT  OF  THE  BRITISH.  509 

Percy  dared  not  halt  long,  for  a  cordon  of  desperate  men  were 
gathering  around  him.  After  partaking  of  some  refreshments  and 
brief  rest,  the  united  forces  resumed  their  march  toward  Boston. 
That  movement  was  a  signal  for  the  minute-men  to  renew  their 
harassing  attacks.  These  were  now  done  in  a  more  systematic 
manner,  for  General  Heath  had  arrived  and  taken  command  of  the 
enrolled  militia  who  were  in  the  field ;  and  Dr.  Warren  was  also 
with  them,  encouraging  and  directing  them.  From  every  place  of 
concealment,  they  terribly  galled  the  regulars  all  the  way  to  West 
Cambridge,  where  a  very  hot  skirmish  occurred,  in  which  Percy 
and  Warren  narrowly  escaped  death.  A  musket-ball  struck  off  a 
button  from  the  waistcoat  of  the  former ;  and  another  knocked  a 
pin  out  of  the  ear-lock  of  the  latter.  In  that  skirmish  the  militia 
suffered  much ;  and  from  that  time,  until  they  reached  Charlestown, 
the  regulars  committed  many  atrocious  acts.  Houses  were  plun 
dered,  property  was  destroyed,  and  several  innocent  persons  were 
murdered.*  This  conduct  greatly  inflamed  the  militia,  and  a  cry 
of  vengeance  went  from  lip  to  lip.  "Indignation  and  outraged 
humanity  struggled  on  the  one  hand,  veteran  discipline  and  desper 
ation  on  the  other."f 

The  contest  at  West  Cambridge  was  brief,  and  the  British,  with 
their  wounded,  pressed  on  toward  Boston.  They  found  the  Cam 
bridge  bridge  removed,  and  were  compelled  to  go  by  the  way  of 
Charlestown.  Every  moment  their  retreat  became  more  perilous 
and  critical.  Their  ammunition  was  almost  exhausted.  The  pro 
vincials  were  pressing  close  upon  their  rear,  unawed  by  the  field- 
pieces.  Armed  men  were  gathering  around  them  by  scores,  from 
Roxbury,  Dorchester,  and  Milton ;  while  Colonel  Pickering,  with 
seven  hundred  Essex  militia,  threatened  to  cut  off  their  retreat  to 
Charlestown.  At  the  base  of  Prospect  hill  another  severe  contest 
ensued,  but  the  regulars,  though  in  confusion,  reached  Charlestown, 
and  reposed  under  cover  of  the  guns  of  the  ships-of-war  in  the 
harbor.  At  sunset,  General  Heath  ordered  the  minute-men  to  halt, 

*  Address  of  the  Provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts  to  the  Inhabitants  of  Great  Britain. 
t  Everett's  "  Lexington  Address  " 


510  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

and  the  main  body  of  the  British  troops,  reinforced  from  Boston, 
occupied  Bunker  hill  that  night.  On  the  following  morning  they 
crossed  over  to  their  quarters  in  the  town,  broken  and  dispirited. 
They  had  lost  during  the  preceding  day,  sixty-five  killed,  one 
hundred  and  eighty-three  wounded,  and  twenty-eight  made  pris 
oners  ;  in  all,  two  hundred  and  seventy-three.  The  Americans  had 
lost  fifty-nine  killed,  thirty-nine  wounded,  and  five  missing ;  in  all, 
one  hundred  and  three. 

The  events  of  that  day  were  exceedingly  mortifying  to  General 
Gage  and  to  British  pride.  Well-disciplined  troops,  boastful  and 
insolent,  had  gone  out  with  the  presumption  of  conscious  strength ; 
and  the  same  troops  had  returned  with  trailing  banners,  beaten  at 
every  turn  by  raw  militia,  many  of  whom  had  never  before  heard 
the  sound  of  a  gun  in  battle.  The  entire  expedition  was  not  only 
fruitless  of  good  results,  but  it  was  absolutely  disgraceful  to  all  the 
aggressors  concerned  in  it;  and  the  event  weakened,  immensely, 
the  loyalty  of  the  American  people.  The  pen  of  satire,  and  the 
pencil  of  caricature,  made  it  a  fruitful  theme ;  and  the  troops,  their 
officers  and  tory  abettors,  were  lampooned  and  derided  without 
stint,  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.* 

On  the  following  day  the  members  of  the  provincial  Congress 
were  summoned  to  convene  at  Watertown.  They  met  on  the  twen 
ty-second,  and  chose  Doctor  Joseph  Warren  president  pro  tempore. 
A  committee  was  appointed  "to  draw  up  a  narrative  of  the  massacre." 
Another  was  chosen  to  take  depositions  at  Lexington  and  Concord, 
concerning  the  skirmishes  at  those  places.  When  all  proper  ma 
terial  was  collected,  an  elaborate  account  was  prepared  and  sent  to 
Arthur  Lee,  one  of  the  colonial  agents  in  London,  together  with 
the  affidavits.  An  "  Address  to  the  Inhabitants  of  Great  Britain," 

*  Among  the  most  popular  of  these  productions,  was  "  The  Irishman's  Epistle,"  which  closed 
with  the  following  stanza,  after  alluding  to  the  flight  of  the  troops  from  Concord  and  Lexington  : — 

"  And  what  have  you  got  now  with  all  your  designing, 
But  a  town  without  victuals  to  sit  down  and  dine  in ; 
And  to  look  on  the  ground  like  a  parcel  of  noodles, 
And  sing,  how  the  Yankees  have  beaten  the  doodles  ? 
I'm  sure  if  you  're  wise  you  '11  make  peace  for  a  dinner, 
For  fighting  and  fasting  will  soon  make  you  thinner." 

Moore's  "Songs  and  Ballads  of  the  American  Revolution." 


JET.  43.]  THE  NEWS  IN  ENGLAND.  511 

was  also  prepared  and  sent  with  the  other  papers;  and  was  first 
published  in  the  "  London  Chonicle,"  on  the  thirtieth  of  May.  That 
address  was  signed  by  the  members  of  the  provincial  Congress. 
While  they  asserted  their  loyalty  to  the  sovereign,  and  their  wil 
lingness  to  "defend  his  person,  family,  crown,  and  dignity,"  they 
also  declared,  with  manly  firmness,  their  determination  no  longer 
to  submit  to  the  tyrannical  rule  of  a  weak  and  wicked  ministry. 

This  intelligence  confounded  the  ministry.  They  had  not  re 
ceived  despatches  from  Gage,  and  affected  to  disbelieve  the  report. 
Dartmouth  issued  a  card  on  the  same  day,  in  which  he  alluded  to 
the  report,  and  said,  "It  is  proper  to  inform  the  public,  that  no 
advice  has,  as  yet,  been  received  in  the  American  department  of 
any  such  event,"  Arthur  Lee,  who  was  narrowly  watching  every 
movement  of  the  ministry,  immediately  issued  a  card,  in  which, 
after  alluding  to  Dartmouth's  communication,  he  said,  "  I  desire  to 
inform  all  those  who  wish  to  see  the  original  affidavits,  which  con 
firm  that  account  [first  published  by  Lee],  that  they  are  deposited 
at  the  Mansion  house,  with  the  right  honorable  the  lord-mayor,  for 
their  inspection." 

Gage's  tardy  despatches  at  length  reached  London,  and  their 
publication  confirmed  the  startling  rumor.  London  was  almost  as 
much  excited  as  Boston ;  and  the  retreat  of  the  troops  from  Con 
cord  and  Lexington  being  regarded  as  a  flight,  the  ministry  heard, 
at  every  corner,  the  revilings  of  the  populace,  concerning  "  the 
great  British  army  at  Boston  that  had  been  scared  and  beaten  by  a 
flock  of  YANKEES  !" 


512  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   XLVI. 

THE     REVOLUTION     BEGUN NEW     ENGLAND     AROUSED OLD     SOLDIERS     IN     THE 

FIELD AN  ARMY  AROUND  BOSTON CONDUCT  OF  GAGE WARREN'S  LETTER 

ACTION  IN  OTHER  NEW  ENGLAND  COLONIES EFFECT  OF  THE  EVENTS  AT  LEX 
INGTON  AND  CONCORD,  IN  OTHER  COLONIES VIRGINIA  ON  FIRE SEIZURE  OF 

POWDER  BY  GOVERNOR  DUNMORE LETTERS  TO  WASHINGTON PATRICK  HENRY 

IN    THE    FIELD DUNMORE    ALARMED THE  ASSEMBLY   CONVENED DUNMORE's 

FLIGHT EVENTS  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA MECKLENBURG  CONVENTION REVOLU 
TIONARY  MOVEMENTS  AT  CHARLESTON  AND  SAVANNAH ROYAL  AUTHORITY  RE 
PUDIATED EXPEDITION  AGAINST  TICONDEROGA CAPTURE  OF  TICONDEROGA 

AND  CROWN  POINT. 

THE  war  of  the  Revolution — the  war  for  justice  and  right — the 
war  for  freedom  and  independence  —  was  now  begun.  The  echo  of 
the  signal-gun,  fired  at  Lexington,  went  over  the  land  like  a  thunder 
peal,  and  thrilled  every  nerve  throughout  the  heart-confederated 
colonies.  In  less  than  thirty  days  there  was  a  cry  "  to  arms !  to 
arms !"  from  the  St.  Croix  to  the  Yadkin  and  the  Alatamaha.  The 
question,  long  in  doubt,  "Who  shall  be  the  aggressor?"  was  an 
swered  on  the  nineteenth  of  April.  The  greater  question  now  to 
be  solved  was,  "  Who  shall  be  the  victor  ?" 

The  yeomanry  of  New  England  were  first  in  the  field,  because 
their  ears  first  heard  the  appeal  of  the  blood  of  the  early  martyrs  • 
and  forty-eight  hours  after  the  flight  of  the  British  troops  to  Boston, 
full  twenty  thousand  men  were  collected  in  the  vicinity  of  that 
city.  They  came  from  every  quarter,  and  from  every  class  of 
society ;  some  with  arms  in  their  hands  and  some  with  none,  each 
anxious  countenance  expressing  the  question,  "  What  can  I  do  ?" 

The  slumbering  energies  of  the  veterans  of  other  wars  were 
awakened.  From  the  hills  of  New  Hampshire,  far  up  on  the 
Merrimack,  came  John  Stark,  a  trapper  and  hunter,  who  had  shared 


BUNKER  HILL 


NEW  T(mK,  VIRTUE  EMMLNS  &  CG 


JET.  43.]  PROCEEDINGS  IN  NEW  YORK.  515 

Putnam,  Wooster,  and  Spencer,  who  had  been  commissioned  as 
generals,  were  each  to  have  a  regiment ;  and  the  remaining  three 
were  to  be  commanded  by  Hinman,  Waterbury,  and  Parsons.  A 
special  convention  of  delegates,  called  by  the  New  Hampshire 
committee  of  safety,  agreed  to  furnish  the  volunteers  from  their 
province,  with  present  supplies ;  and  on  the  seventeenth  of  May, 
the  provincial  Congress  of  that  colony  resolved  to  raise  two  thou 
sand  troops,  in  addition  to  those  already  in  the  field.  Of  these, 
Nathan  Folsom  was  appointed  commander-in-chief,  with  the  rank 
of  brigadier.  Two  days  afterward,  the  provincial  Congress  of  Mas 
sachusetts  clothed  the  committee  of  safety,  then  sitting  at  Cam 
bridge,  with  full  powers  to  regulate  the  movements  of  the  gathering 
army.  General  Ward,  as  we  have  seen,  was  captain-general,  and 
John  Thomas  was  made  his  lieutenant.  Kichard  Gridley,  who  had 
experienced  siege-service  at  Louisburg,  thirty  years  before,  was  com 
missioned  a  commander  of  a  corps  of  artillery,  authorized  to  be  raised, 
and  was  appointed  chief-engineer,  with  Henry  Knox,  a  Boston  book 
seller,  who  had  commanded  an  artillery  company  in  that  city,  as  his 
assistant.  At  the  beginning  of  June,  the  combined  forces  then  at 
Cambridge,  amounted  to  about  sixteen  thousand  men ;  and  the 
British  army  in  Boston,  increased,  meanwhile,  by  fresh  arrivals  from 
England  and  Ireland,  numbered  about  ten  thousand. 

As  the  news  of  bloodshed  went  westward  and  southward,  it 
aroused  the  people  to  immediate  and  decisive  action.  The  New 
York  assembly,  thoroughly  leavened  with  toryism,  had  steadily 
refused  to  sanction  the  proceedings  of  the  first  continental  Con 
gress,  and  to  appoint  delegates  to  the  second.  The  American 
Association  was  very  popular  in  New  York,  and  a  committee  of 
sixty  had  been  appointed  by  the  people  to  enforce  it.  These,  sup 
ported  by  the  true  sons  of  liberty,  took  the  lead  in  political  affairs. 
They  had  called  a  convention  on  the  twenty-second  of  April,  when 
delegates  to  the  continental  Congress  were  appointed;  and,  on 
their  recommendation,  the  people  proceeded  to  elect  delegates  for 
a  provincial  Congress,  which  assembled  in  New  York  a  month  later. 
The  intelligence  of  the  sacrifice  of  minute-men  at  Lexington, 


516  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

reached  them  on  Sunday,  the  twenty-third,  while  Captain  Sears, 
one  of  the  boldest  of  the  popular  leaders,  was  in  official  custody, 
because  he  had,  in  haranguing  the  people,  advised  them  to  arm 
themselves.:::  Sears  was  released,  and  the  patriots  took  possession 
of  the  city-hall,  armed  themselves,  demanded  and  received  the  keys 
of  the  customhouse,  and  closed  its  doors  to  prevent  vessels  clearing 
for  other  ports,  and  committed  other  acts  of  rebellion.  On  the  fifth 
of  May,  they  appointed  a  general  committee  of  safety,  composed 
of  one  hundred  of  the  leading  citizens  of  New  York ;  and  the  next 
day,  an  "Association  for  the  Defence  of  Colonial  Eights,"  drawn  up 
by  the  committee  of  correspondence,  was  signed  by  at  least  a 
thousand  of  the  principal  inhabitants  of  the  city  and  county. 
Thus,  early  in  1775,  royal  power  in  that  colony  was  virtually  at  an 
end.  General  alarm  pervaded  the  tory  ranks ;  the  colonial  assem 
bly  never  met  again ;  and  the  provincial  Congress,  which  convened 
on  the  twenty-second  of  May,  assumed  all  the  legislative  and  execu 
tive  functions  of  regular  government.^" 

When  the  news  from  Lexington  reached  New  Jersey,  the  people, 
in  spite  of  the  prompt  action  and  strong  remonstrances  of  Governor 
Franklin,  took  possession  of  the  province  treasury,  in  which  there 
was  about  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  appropriated  a  part 
of  it  to  the  payment  of  troops  they  were  then  raising  for  the 
defence  of  their  liberties.  When  the  same  intelligence  reached 

*  The  people  of  Boston  refused  to  furnish  either  labor  or  materials  to  General  Gage,  when  he 
was  fortifying  Boston  Neck,  in  the  autumn  of  1774  ;  and  in  the  spring  of  1775,  he  sent  to  New  York 
for  both,  in  order  to  erect  bai-racks  for  the  soldiers  on  Boston  common.  The  patriots  in  New  York, 
informed  that  a  sloop  laden  with  lumber  was  about  to  sail  for  Boston,  held  a  meeting  and  resolved 
to  seize  the  vessel.  At  that  meeting  Captain  Sears  exhorted  the  people  to  arm  themselves  with 
muskets,  and  twenty-four  ball-cartridges  each.  For  this  he  was  aiTested  and  taken  before  the  mayor. 
He  refused  to  give  bail,  and  was  about  to  be  carried  to  prison,  when  the  people  took  him  from  the 
officers,  and  bore  him  in  triumph  through  the  town,  preceded  by  a  band  of  music,  and  a  banner. 
He  addressed  the  assembled  people  again  that  night ;  and  a  few  days  afterward  he  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  provincial  Congress. 

t  New  York  has  been  unjustly  taunted  for  its  adhesion  to  the  ministry  at  the  commencement  of 
the  Revolution.  It  must  be  remembered  that  family  influence  was  very  great  and  extensive  in  that 
colony,  and  through  it,  the  general  assembly,  as  well  as  the  provincial  Congress,  was  loyally  in 
clined.  But  the  great  body  of  the  people  were  chiefly  republicans  in  feeling,  and  when  toryism  was 
fairly  crushed  out  of  the  popular  assembly,  no  state  was  more  zealous  and  patriotic,  than  New  York. 
Of  a  population  of  thirty-two  thousand  five  hundred  liable  to  do  military  duty,  New  York  furnished 
seventeen  thousand  eight  hundred  soldiers  for  the  continental  army ;  over  three  thousand  more  than 
Congress  required 


~1 

/ET.  43.]  MOVEMENTS  SOUTHWARD.  517 

Philadelphia,  on  the  twentj-fourth  of  April,  a  large  meeting  was 
held,  and  measures  were  adopted  for  organizing  a  volunteer  military 
association.  It  was  popular  all  over  the  province.  The  elders 
among  the  quakers  shook  their  heads  and  uttered  grave  admoni 
tions  ;  but  in  spite  of  these,  many  of  the  younger  members  of  the 
society,  warmed  by  the  fire  of  Mifflin's  zeal,  took  part  in  the  organ 
ization,  and  the  "quaker  company,"  already  mentioned,  about 
thirty  in  number,  under  Captain  Humphreys,  was  formed.  Leading 
men  of  Philadelphia,  such  as  Dickinson,  M'Kean,  and  Wilson,  ac 
cepted  military  command ;  and  the  assembly,  on  the  first  of  May, 
voted  nine  thousand  dollars  toward  defraying  the  expenses  of  the 
volunteers.  A  committee  of  safety  was  appointed,  and  Doctor 
Franklin,  who  had  just  returned  from  England,  convinced  that 
peaceful  relations  between  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies  were  at 
an  end,  was  appointed  chairman.  That  committee  speedily  took 
measures  for  the  defence  of  Philadelphia,  and  in  the  absence  of  a 
provincial  Congress,  assumed  executive  authority. 

The  startling  news  reached  Baltimore  six  days  after  the  events, 
and  the  inhabitants  immediately  seized  upon  the  provincial  magazine, 
which  contained  fifteen  hundred  stand  of  arms,  and  other  munitions 
of  war.  A  numerous  body  of  the  citizens  enrolled  themselves  as 
volunteers  to  join  the  army  at  Boston ;  and  the  provisional  govern 
ment,  consisting  of  twenty-nine  of  the  principal  men  of  Baltimore, 
who  w^ere  appointed  in  November  previous  a  "  committee  of  obser 
vation,"  recommended  the  discontinuance  of  fairs,  as  conducive  to 
"mischiefs  and  disorders,"  and  inveighed  against  horse-racing,  cock- 
fighting,  and  general  extravagance,  as  not  only  wrong  in  them 
selves,  but  as  derogatory  to  the  character  of  patriots  at  that  solemn 
hour. 

Virginia  was  all  on  fire  when  the  news  from  Lexington  arrived. 
Simultaneously  with  General  Gage's  obedience  to  the  secret  instruc 
tions  of  the  ministry,  Lord  Dunrnore  had  attempted,  pursuant  to 
the  same  instructions,  to  deprive  the  Virginians  of  the  powder 
belonging  to  the  province,  by  having  it  secretly  conveyed  from  the 
magazine  at  Williamsburg,  on  board  of  a  British  schooner  lying  in 


518  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  York  river,  a  little  below  that  town.  This  attempt  was  made  at 
near  midnight,  on  the  twentieth  of  April.  The  movement  was 
discovered,  and  at  dawn  the  following  morning,  the  minute-men  of 
Williamsburg  assembled,  with  their  arms,  and  were  with  difficulty 
restrained  from  seizing  the  governor.  At  that  moment  a  servile 
insurrection  was  apprehended ;  and  at  a  public  meeting  of  the 
inhabitants,  held  early  in  the  forenoon,  a  respectful  remonstrance 
was  sent  to  Dunmore,  complaining  of  the  injustice  and  cruelty  of 
his  act,  at  such  a  time.  The  governor  made  an  evasive  and  unsat 
isfactory  reply,  which  increased  the  irritation  of  the  people,  and 
they  demanded  the  immediate  restoration  of  the  powder  to  the 
public  magazine. 

The  martial  spirit  of  the  whole  colony  was  aroused  when  intelli 
gence  of  this  act  became  known.  The  independent  companies 
immediately  flew  to  arms,  and  prepared  to  march  to  Williamsburg 
and  compel  the  governor  to  restore  the  powder;  and,  on  the  twenty- 
fifth,  the  following  letter  was  written  to  Colonel  Washington,  from 
Fredericksburg,  signed  by  Hugh  Mercer,  G.  Weeden,  Alexander 
Spottswood,  and  John  Willis,  the  first  three  of  whom  were  after 
ward  well  known  as  officers  in  the  continental  army : — 

"Sin:  By  intelligence  from  Williamsburg  it  appears,  that  Cap 
tain  Collins,  of  his  majesty's  navy,  at  the  head  of  fifteen  marines, 
carried  off  the  powder  from  the  magazine  in  that  city,  on  the  night 
of  Thursday  last,  and  conveyed  it  on  board  his  vessel,  by  order  of 
the  governor.  The  gentlemen  of  the  independent  company  of  this 
town  think  this  first  public  insult  is  not  to  be  tamely  submitted  to, 
and  determine,  with  your  approbation,  to  join  any  other  bodies  of 
armed  men,  who  are  willing  to  appear  in  support  of  the  honor  of 
Virginia,  as  well  as  to  secure  the  military  stores  yet  remaining  in 
the  magazine.  It  is  proposed  to  march  hence  on  Saturday  next 
for  Williamsburg,  properly  accoutred  as  light-horsemen.  Expresses 
are  sent  off  to  inform  the  commanding  officers  of  companies  in  the 
adjacent  counties  of  this  our  resolution,  and  we  shall  wait  prepared 
for  your  instructions  and  their  assistance."* 

*  Spurks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  LI.  (Appendix),  507. 


Mr.  43.]  HENRY'S  TRIUMPH.  519 

Similar  letters  came  to  Washington  from  the  companies  of  other 
counties,  and  he  would,  doubtless,  have  led  a  little  army  to  the 
Virginia  capital,  early  in  May,  had  not  the  prompt  energy  of  Pat 
rick  Henry  already  accomplished  the  desired  result.  That  patriot 
was  at  his  home,  in  Hanover,  when  intelligence  of  Dunmore's  act 
reached  him.  He  immediately  assembled  a  corps  of  volunteers  at 
New  Castle,  on  the  Pamunkey  (then  a  flourishing  village,  but  now 
a  desolation),  and  marched  immediately  for  Williamsburg,  to  secure 
the  provincial  treasury  from  a  like  outrage,  and  to  procure  a  restora 
tion  of  the  powder.  His  little  band  was  considerably  increased 
wrhile  on  the  inarch,  and  when  he  arrived  at  Doncaster's  ordinary, 
within  sixteen  miles  of  the  capital,  on  the  fourth  of  May,  Henry 
was  at  the  head  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  well-armed  and  resolute 
men.  There  he  was  met  by  some  of  the  lower  Virginia  delegation, 
on  their  way  to  the  continental  Congress,  who  informed  him  that 
his  approach  had  alarmed  the  governor,  and  that  Corbin,  the  re 
ceiver-general,  was  on  his  way,  with  authority  from  Dunmore,  to 
compromise  the  matter.  Corbin  soon  arrived.  Henry  demanded 
and  received  the  value  of  the  powder,*  and  sent  the  amount  to 
the  treasury  at  Williamsburg.  He  then  disbanded  his  followers, 
returned  to  Hanover,  and  set  out  for  Philadelphia  to  attend  the 
continental  Congress. 

Henry's  act  greatly  irritated  Lord  Dunmore,  and  he  uttered 
strong  menaces  against  the  people.  He  declared,  that  if  one  of 
his  officers  should  be  injured  by  them,  he  would  raise  the  royal 
standard,  proclaim  freedom  to  every  slave  who  should  join  it,  arm. 
them,  and  lay  Williamsburg  in  ashes.  He  issued  a  proclamation 
denouncing  Patrick  Henry  and  his  followers  as  rebels;  filled  his 
palace  with  his  adherents,  and  surrounded  it  with  shotted  cannon. 
This  foolish  display  of  impotent  wrath,  destroyed  the  last  vestige 
of  popular  respect  for  the  governor.  In  every  county  committees 

*  All  the  arms  and  ammunition  in  the  maga/Jnc  were  not  sufficient  to  cause  a  disturbance,  for 
they  were  too  insignificant  to  be  of  much  service  to  either  party.  There  were  only  fifteen  half- 
barrels  of  powder,  of  fifty  pounds  each.  It  was  not  the  value  for  which  Henry  contended.  It  was 
a  principle  that  he  was  quick  to  assert.  He  deemed  it  very  important  to  strike  a  decided  blow,  before 
an  overwhelming  royal  force  should  enter  the  colony  and  deprive  the  inhabitants  of  the  power  of 


520  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY. 

of  safety  were  formed ;  and  at  numerous  public  meetings  the  act 
of  Henry  was  warmly  applauded.  Dunmore  had  sown  the  wind 
by  his  unwise  and  ungenerous  course.,  and  he  was  now  reaping  the 
whirlwind.  He  had  raised  a  tempest  which  he  could  not  control. 

While  the  storm  was  raging,  and  the  hand  of  all  Virginia  was 
upon  its  sword-hilt,  the  governor  unexpectedly  convened  the  assem 
bly,  and  there  was  a  lull.  His  object  was  to  lay  before  them  the 
deceptive  measure  of  Lord  North,  miscalled  a  conciliatory  bill. 
They  met  on  the  first  of  June,  and  were  proceeding  quietly  with 
business,  when  a  plan  of  Dunmore's  to  blow  up  and  destroy  the 
magazine  was  discovered.  This  fact,  and  a  false  rumor  circulated 
at  the  same  moment,  that  a  corps  of  marines  were  approaching  to 
the  support  of  Dunmore,  brought  matters  to  a  crisis.  The  people 
flew  to  arms;  and  the  governor,  justly  fearing  personal  violence, 
left  Williamsburg  with  his  family  early  in  the  morning  of  the  eighth, 
and  took  refuge  on  board  the  Fowcy  man-of-war,  then  lying  in  York 
river.  With  this  flight  of  the  king's  representative,  royal  power  in 
Virginia  was  ended.  Dunmore  was  the  first  to  u  abdicate  govern 
ment  here." 

Onward  the  news  of  the  bloodshed  at  Lexington  was  carried. 
Li  North  Carolina  the  inhabitants  were  in  a  great  ferment  when  it 
reached  there.  More  than  a  month  before,  Governor  Martin  and 
the  people  had  quarrelled.  That  official  had  tried  to  prevent  the 
organization  of  a  provincial  Congress  in  April.  His  efforts  were 
vain.  The  Congress  was  formed,  the  acts  of  the  continental  Con 
gress  were  approved,  and  royal  power  wras  virtually  abolished.  A 
little  later  a  still  bolder  step  was  taken  in  the  interior  of  the  prov 
ince.  The  committees  of  Mecklenburg  county  assembled  at  Char 
lotte  toward  the  close  of  May,  and  by  a  series  of  resolutions,  vir 
tually  declared  themselves,  and  their  constituents,  independent  of 
the  British  crown,  and  took  measures  to  organize  a  provisional 
government,  as  an  independent  state.  While  that  convention  was 
in  session,  a  courier  arrived  with  intelligence  from  Boston,  and  this 
greatly  increased  the  excitement  all  over  the  Yadkin  and  Catawba 
region. 


JE-L\  43.]  SEIZURE  OF  POWDER  AND  ARMS.  521 

The  cry  of  blood  from  Lexington  and  Concord,  reached  Charleston 
twenty  days  after  the  skirmishes.  The  vigilant  patriots  there  had 
already,  as  we  have  observed,  discovered  the  secret  orders  sent  to 
the  governors,  to  seize  the  arms  and  ammunition  of  the  colonists. 
Acting  upon  this  discovery,  made  on  the  nineteenth  of  April,  com 
mittees  were  appointed  to  seize  all  the  powder  in  the  magazines  in 
the  vicinity  of  Charleston,  and  the  small  arms  in  the  depository 
there.  The  powder  was  secured  on  the  night  of  the  twentieth, 
and  on  the  night  of  the  twenty-first,  they  carried  off  to  a  place  of 
safety,  for  the  use  of  the  patriots,  eight  hundred  stand  of  small 
arms,  two  hundred  cutlasses,  and  other  important  military  articles. 
This  business  was  performed  under  the  sanction  of  the  leading  men 
of  Charleston.  The  powder  was  boldly  landed  at  the  wharf  of 
Christopher  Gadsden ;  and  no  one  dared  to  interfere  with  the  seizure 
of  the  arms.* 

The  Charleston  patriots  sent  intelligence  of  their  discovery  to 
their  brethren  at  Savannah,  and  before  the  latter  had  heard  of  the 
tragedy  in  New  England,  six  of  the  members  of  the  council  of 
safety^  and  others,  had  broken  open  the  magazine,  took  out  the 
powder,  sent  a  portion  of  it  to  a  place  of  safety  in  South  Carolina, 
and  concealed  the  remainder,  in  small  parcels,  in  their  garrets  and 
cellars.  Governor  Wright  offered  a  reward  of  one  hundred  and 
fifty  pounds  sterling  for  the  apprehension  of  the  offenders,  but  the 
secret  of  their  names  was  never  revealed  until  the  patriots  had 
driven  the  governor  from  the  shores  of  Georgia,  and  were  using 
the  powder  in  defence  of  their  liberties. 

*  Johnson,  in  his  "  Traditions  and  Reminiscences  of  the  Revolution,"  says,  that  Captain  Coch- 
ran,  the  powder-receiver  at  Charleston,  "was  well  disposed  to  the  American  cause;"  but  he  was 
compelled  to  do  his  duty,  while  in  office.  Much  of  the  powder  in  his  possession  belonged  to  mer 
chants,  to  whom  he  was  responsible.  So  he  took  from  each  of  these  owners  a  bill  of  his  powder, 
presented  these  to  Colonel  Henry  Laurens,  chairman  of  the  executive  committee  of  the  province, 
received  the  money,  paid  the  merchants  the  amount  of  their  bills,  "  and  delivered  the  powder  into  the 
hands  of  General  Gadsden,  for  the  revolutionists."  This  seizure  of  powder  and  firearms,  was  coun 
tenanced  and  encouraged  by  the  leading  patriots.  In  fact,  such  men  as  Henry  Laurens,  Christopher 
Gadsden,  Charles  C.  Pinckney,  president  of  the  provincial  Congress,  Thomas  Lynch,  a  member  of 
the  continental  Congress,  William  Bull,  a  nephew  of  the  governor,  and  William  Henry  Drayton, 
another  nephew,  and  lately,  a  member  of  the  governor's  privy  council,  were  prominent  actors. 

t  Noble  Wimberly  Jones,  Joseph  Habersham,  Edward  Telfair,  William  Gibbons,  Joseph  Clay, 
and  John  Milledge.  The  magazine  was  at  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  town,  and  was  so  strong, 
that  the  governor  had  not  considered  a  guard  necessary. 


522  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Before  the  middle  of  June,  when  the  first  battle  of  the  Revolu 
tion  was  fought,  on  Breed's  hill,  the  inhabitants  of  all  the  colonies 
had  virtually,  if  not  actually,  repudiated  royal  authority,  and  were 
controlled  by  that  true  government  which  is  based  upon  the  popu 
lar  will.  Obedience  to  the  representatives  of  the  crown  was  no 
longer  a  rule,  but  the  exception;  and  the  voice  of  the  king,  uttered 
from  the  throne,  having  declared  the  Americans  to  be  rebels,  left 
them  free  to  act  the  rebel's  part,  as  offenders  as  well  as  defenders. 
They  had  stood  in  an  attitude  of  defence  until  the  first  blow  had 
been  struck.  That  blow  had  severed  the  bond  of  allegiance,  and 
the  civil  and  military  authorities  felt  warranted  in  taking  vigorous 
measures,  even  on  the  offensive.  And  these  were  accordingly 
adopted,  as  we  shall  now  observe. 

The  policy  of  the  ministry  in  wooing  and  winning  the  allegiance 
of  the  Canadians  by  the  Quebec  act,  was  wise  and  judicious,  for  at 
the  time  of  its  adoption,  in  the  spring  of  1774,  it  was  evident  that 
a  general  revolt  of  the  American  colonies  might  be  anticipated  as  a 
possibility,  if  not  a  probability.  In  that  event,  it  would  be  very 
important  for  Great  Britain  to  have  a  stand-point,  rendezvous,  and 
depository,  for  an  army  and  its  supplies,  so  convenient  as  Canada 
to  the  scene  of  trouble,  and  with  such  a  noble  river  as  the  St.  Law 
rence  for  the  transportation  of  the  paraphernalia  of  war.  This  was 
the  secret  motive  for  the  passage  of  the  Quebec  act,  This  motive 
was  clearly  perceived  by  the  leaders  of  the  public  mind  in  the 
other  colonies,  and  from  that  time,  Canada  became  an  object  of 
much  solicitation.  The  continental  Congress  of  1774  sent  a  special 
addresss  to  the  inhabitants  of  that  province;  and  in  March,  1775, 
Samuel  Adams  and  Joseph  Warren,  members  of  the  committee  of 
correspondence  in  Boston,  sent  a  ;  ecret  agent  into  Canada,  to  ascer 
tain  the  opinions  and  temper  of  the  people  there  concerning  the 
great  political  questions  at  issue,  and  the  momentous  events  then 
pending.  After  a  diligent  but  cautious  performance  of  his  task,  the 
agent  sent  them  word  from  Montreal,  that  the  people  were,  at  best, 
lukewarm ;  and  he  advised,  that  the  moment  hostilities  should  com 
mence,  the  strong  fortress  of  Ticonderoga,  on  Lake  Champlain, 


JET.  43.]  A  BOLD  EXPEDITION  PLANNED.  523 

should  be  seized.  He  gave  his  employers  positive  assurance,  that 
the  people  of  the  New  Hampshire  Grants  (now  Vermont),  were 
ready  to  undertake  the  bold  enterprise.* 

Three  weeks  after  this  information  was  received  by  Adams  and 
Warren,  hostilities  commenced  at  Lexington,  and  the  moment  to 
act  aggressively  had  arrived.  The  continental  Congress  would  not 
assemble  in  less  than  twenty  days.  Delay  was  dangerous ;  and  it 
would  not  be  prudent  to  wait  for  ;he  action  of  that  body.  Besides, 
secrecy  was  important ;  and  so,  without  the  official  sanction  of  any 
civil  authority,  an  expedition  against  Ticonderoga  was  prepared. 
It  was  originated  in  the  Connecticut  assembly.  Wooster,  Deane, 
Parsons,  Stevens,  and  other  members  arranged  the  plan,  and  ap 
pointed  two  persons,  as  a  committee  to  proceed  to  the  frontier  towns, 
ascertain  the  condition  of  the  fort  and  the  strength  of  the  garrison, 
and,  if  they  thought  it  expedient,  to  raise  men  and  attempt  the  sur 
prise  and  capture  of  that  post.  One  thousand  dollars  were  advanced 
from  the  provincial  treasury  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  expedi 
tion.  The  assembly  had  perfect  knowledge  of  the  whole  affair,  but 
it  was  thought  expedient  to  withhold  its  sanction. 

A  few  men  in  Connecticut  joined  the  committee ;  and  after  con- 

*  By  the  grant  of  Charles  the  Second  to  his  brother  James,  duke  of  York,  the  tract  in  America 
called  New  York  was  bounded  on  the  east  by  the  Connecticut  river,  while  the  charters  of  Massa 
chusetts  and  Connecticut,  gave  those  provinces  a  westward  extent  to  the  "  South  sea"  or  the  Pacific 
ocean.  When,  toward  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  settlements  began  to  be  made  westward  of  the 
Connecticut  river,  disputes  arose,  and  the  line  between  Connecticut  and  New  York  was  finally 
drawn,  by  mutual  agreement,  twenty  miles  east  of  the  Hudson.  Massachusetts  claimed  a  continua 
tion  of  the  Connecticut  line  as  its  western  boundary,  but  New  York  contested  the  claim  as  inter 
fering  with  prior  grants  to  that  colony.  New  Hampshire,  lying  north  of  Massachusetts,  was  riot,  as 
yet,  disturbed  by  these  disputes,  for  the  country  west  of  the  Green  mountains  was  a  wilderness,  and 
had  never  been  surveyed.  When  Benning  Wentworth  was  made  governor  of  New  Hampshire,  he 
was  authorized  to  issue  patents  for  unimproved  lands  within  his  province,  and.  in  1749  applications 
were  made  to  him  for  grants  beyond  the  mountains.  He  gave  a  patent  that  year  for  a  township  six 
miles  square,  having  its  western  line  twenty  miles  east  of  the  Hudson,  and  in  his  honor  it  was  named 
Bennington.  The  governor  and  council  of  New  York  remonstrated  against  this  grant,  vet  Went 
worth  continued  to  issue  patents;  and,  in  1754,  fourteen  townships  of  this  kind  wv.re  laid  out,  and 
settlements  commenced.  During  the  French  and  Indian  war  settlements  increased  tardily,  but  after 
the  victory  of  Wolfe  at  Quebec,  numerous  applications  for  grants  were  made  ;  and  at  the  time  of 
the  peace,  in  1763,  one  hundred  and  thirty-eight  townships  were  surveyed  west  of  the  Connecticut 
river,  and  these  were  termed  the  New  Hampshire  Grants.  The  controversy  between  New  York  and 
the  Grants  became  so  violent,  that  military  organizations  took  place  in  tiie  latter  section,  to  resist 
the  civil  power  of  New  York,  and  about  1772,  the  military  thus  enrolled  were  first  called  Green 
Mountain  Boys  ;  among  the  most  active  and  daring  of  whom  were  Ethan  and  Ira  Allen,  Seth 
,  Warner,  and  Remember  Baker,  men  whom  we  shall  have  occasion  to  observe  hereafter. — Sec 
Sparks's  Life  of  Ethan  Allen,  and  Thompson's  Vermont,  part  ii. 


524  WASHINGTON  :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

suiting  Colonels  Easton  and  Brown,  at  Pittsfield  in  Massachusetts, 
who  agreed  to  join  them,  the  latter  enlisted  about  forty  volunteers 
from  his  regiment,  and  the  whole  party  went  on  to  Bennington,  the 
home  of  Colonel  Ethan  Allen,  who  possessed  almost  unbounded 
control  over  the  Green  Mountain  Boys,  as  the  train-bands  of  that 
region  were  called.  He  joined  the  expedition  with  a  strong  corps, 
and  at  dusk,  on  the  seventh  of  May,  the  whole  party,  two  hundred 
and  seventy  strong,  halted  at  Castleton  and  held  a  council  of 
war.  Colonel  Allen  was  appointed  the  command er-in-chief,  Colonel 
Easton  his  lieutenant,  and  Colonel  Seth  Warner  the  third  in  com 
mand. 

While  these  movements  were  in  progress,  a  similar  expedition, 
for  the  same  purpose,  had  been  concocted  and  arranged  at  Cam 
bridge.  When  the  news  of  the  skirmishes  at  Lexington  reached 
New  Haven,  Benedict  Arnold  (afterward  the  brave  soldier  and  base 
traitor),  then  a  druggist  and  bookseller  in  that  town,  hurried  to  Cam 
bridge  with  a  company  of  volunteers,  of  which  he  was  captain,  and 
joined  the  gathering  army  there.  No  doubt  he  had  heard  of  the 
proposed  expedition  against  the  lake  fortress  before  leaving  home, 
for  soon  after  his  arrival  at  Cambridge  he  went  before  the  com 
mittee  of  safety,  offered  the  plan  of  an  expedition,  and  procured 
for  himself  the  appointment  of  its  commander-in-chief,  and  the 
commission  of  colonel,  from  the  Massachusetts  provincial  Congress. 
He  was  to  raise  not  more  than  four  hundred  men ;  and  the  pro 
vincial  Congress  supplied  him  with  money,  horses,  and  munitions. 

Arnold  was  instructed  to  raise  his  men  in  western  Massachusetts. 
On  reaching  Stockbridge,  he  was  disappointed  in  finding  another 
expedition  already  in  the  field ;  and  stopping  only  long  enough  to 
engage  a  few  officers  and  men  to  follow  him,  he  hastened  forward 
to  join  the  others  at  Castleton.  Ambitious  and  selfish,  he  claimed 
the  right  to  chief  command,  because  of  his  commission,  which,  he 
averred,  was  superior  to  all  others.  His  claim  was  denied ;  and  the 
Green  Mountain  Boys  declared,  that  they  would  shoulder  their 
muskets  and  march  home  rather  than  serve  under  any  other  leader 
than  their  beloved  Allen.  Arnold  yielded,  but  with  a  bad  grace, 


&T.  43.]  CAPTURE  OF  TICONDEROGA.  525 

and  he  joined  the  expedition  as  a  volunteer,  maintaining  the  rank 
of  his  commission,  but  having  no  command. 

On  the  evening  of  the  ninth  of  May  the  expedition  arrived  upon 
the  Yermont  shore  of  Lake  Champlam,  opposite  Ticonderoga,  and 
small  parties,  already  detached,  went  up  and  down  the  lake  to 
secure  some  boats.  All  night  the  eager  patriots  awaited  in  vain 
the  return  of  these  parties,  for  they  had  few  boats  with  them. 
These  continued  to  cross  and  recross  for  some  hours;  but  just 
before  the  dawn,  only  the  officers  and  eighty-three  men  were  upon 
the  Ticonderoga  shore,  below  the  old  grenadier's  battery.  Imme 
diate  action  was  necessary.  Delay  might  be  fatal,  for  the  armed 
garrison,  strongly  posted,  would  make  a  stout  resistance. 

Allen,  with  Arnold  at  his  side,  arranged  his  followers  in  three 
lines  below  the  bank,  harangued  them  briefly  in  low  tones,  and 
then,  led  by  a  lad  who  knew  the  fort  well,  they  all  moved  quickly 
and  stealthily  up  the  slope  to  the  sally-port.  The  sentinel  there 
snapped  his  fusee  and  fled  along  the  covered  way  to  alarm  the 
garrison.  The  Americans  followed  closely,  and  the  frightened  fugi 
tive,  in  his  flight,  led  them  directly  to  the  parade  within  the  fortress. 
There  another  sentinel  was  silenced,  and  the  invaders,  with  a  tre 
mendous  shout,  awakened  the  sleeping  garrison.  As  these  rushed 
to  the  parade  they  were  all  made  prisoners. 

It  was  now  four  o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  boy-guide*  had 
led  Allen  up  an  exterior  staircase  to  the  door  of  the  bedroom  of 
Delaplace,  the  commandant  of  the  garrison.  Three  loud  raps  with 
the  heavy  hilt  of  Allen's  sword,  and  an  order  for  his  instant  appear 
ance,  given  in  a  voice  of  peculiar  power,  brought  Delaplace  to  the 
door,  half-dressed  and  greatly  bewildered,  with  his  pretty  wife  close 
behind  him,  shivering  with  fear.  Allen  and  Delaplace  had  been 
old  friends.  When  the  latter  perceived  who  his  disturber  was,  he 
boldly  demanded  his  errand.  Pointing  to  his  men  and  the  disarmed 
garrison  on  the  parade,  Allen  said,  sternly,  "  I  order  you  to  surren 
der  instantly!" — "By  what  authority  do  you  demand  it?"  asked 

*  The  name  of  the  lad  was  Nathan  Beman.  He  lived  until  December,  1846,  when  he  died,  in 
Franklin  county,  New  York,  at  the  age  of  almost  ninety  years. 


5',>6  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  captain  in  astonishment.  "By  the  Great  Jehovah  and  the 
continental  Congress !"  thundered  Allen,  at  the  same  time  flourish 
ing  his  sword  over  the  head  of  the  commander,  and  ordering  him 
to  be  silent  and  obedient.  There  was  no  alternative.  Delaplace 
had  about  as  much  respect  for  the  "  continental  Congress"  as  Allen 
had  for  "  Jehovah ;"  and  they  respectively  relied  upon  and  feared 
powder  and  ball  more  than  either.  Delaplace,  making  a  virtue  of 
necessity,  surrendered  gracefully;  and  he,  with  the  garrison  of 
forty-eight  men,  and  the  women  and  children,  were  sent  prisoners 
to  Hartford,  in  Connecticut.  The  spoils  of  victory  wrere  precisely 
such  as  the  patriot  army  at  Boston  much  needed.  They  consisted 
of  one  hundred  and  twenty  iron  cannons,  fifty  swivels,  two  mortars, 
a  howitzer,  and  a  cohorn,  a  large  quantity  of  ammunition  and  other 
stores,  a  warehouse  full  of  naval  munitions,  and  quite  a  large  quan 
tity  of  provisions. 

Just  as  the  surrender  was  made  complete,  Colonel  Warner  came 
over  with  the  remainder  of  the  expedition ;  and  when  all  had 
breakfasted,  he  was  sent  with  a  detachment  of  men,  in  boats,  to 
attack  Crown  Point.  He  was  driven  back  by  a  wind,  but  on  the 
twelfth  he  reached  that  fortress,  and  it  was  surrendered  without 
hesitation. 

Arnold  now  again  assumed  the  right  to  chief  authority,  by  virtue 
of  his  commission,  but  his  claim  was  resisted,  and  the  semi-official 
committee  of  the  Connecticut  legislature,  who  had  charge  of  the 
expedition,  formally  installed  Colonel  Allen  in  command  of  Ticon- 
deroga  and  its  dependencies,  and  authorized  him  to  remain  as  such 
until  he  should  receive  further  orders  from  the  Connecticut  assem 
bly  or  the  continental  Congress.  Arnold  yielded,  but  sent  a  prot 
est,  and  a  statement  of  his  grievances  to  the  provincial  Congress 
of  Massachusetts,  from  whom  he  had  received  his  commission. 
Soon  after  that  he  went  down  the  lake,  in  command  of  a  sort  of 
amphibious  expedition,  where  we  shall  meet  him  hereafter. 

Six  hours  after  the  surrender  of  Ticonderoga,  the  second  conti 
nental  Congress  assembled  in  Philadelphia. 


JEr.  43.1  WASHINGTON,  GATES,  AND  FAIRFAX.  527 


CHAPTER   XLVII. 

WASHINGTON   AND    HTS    GUESTS  AT  MOUNT  VERNON NEWS  OP  THE  LEXINGTON 

SKIRMISH  —  WASHINGTON'S  JOURNEY  TO  PHILADELPHIA  —  RECEPTION  OF  DELE 
GATES MEETING  OF  THE  SECOND  CONGRESS PRELIMINARY  PROCEEDINGS 

CHARACTER  OF  THE  CONGRESS ITS  SUPREMACY  ACKNOWLEDGED CAUTION, 

VIGILANCE,  AND  ACTIVITY WASHINGTON  ON  IMPORTANT  COMMITTEES CAN 
ADA AMERICAN  CONTINENTAL  ARMY APPOINTMENT  OF  COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 

— ADAMS'S  NARRATIVE  —  WASHINGTON  CHOSEN  —  REASONS  FOR  THE  CHOICE  — 
WASHINGTON'S  CHARACTER  DELINEATED  BY  A  BRITISH  PEN  —  HIS  ACCEPTANCE 
OF  THE  OFFICE HIS  SPEECH LETTERS  TO  HJS  WIFE  AND  FRIENDS DE 
PARTURE  FOR  CAMBRIDGE. 

COLONEL  WASHINGTON  was  at  his  home  on  the  Potomac,  enter 
taining  Horatio  Gates,  Bryan  Fairfax,  and  a  distant  relative,  as 
guests,  when  the  intelligence  of  bloodshed  came  from  New  England. 
The  powder-excitement  which  originated  at  Williamsburg,  was  then 
at  its  height,  and  Washington,  who  was  preparing  for  his  journey 
to  Philadelphia,  to  attend  the  second  continental  Congress,  was 
called  upon  to  decide  which  field  of  duty,  Virginia  or  the  nation, 
demanded  his  first  care. 

The  news  from  the  east  made  a  deep  impression  upon  the  inmates 
of  Mount  Yernon.  Fairfax,  gentle  and  timid,  and  drawn  by  ties 
of  consanguinity  and  ancestral  reverence  to  the  side  of  the  mother- 
country,  was  much  distressed,  for  he  perceived  the  peril  of  pleasant 
social  relations.  Gates,  ambitious  of  military  glory,  and  the  honors 
and  emoluments  of  office,  for  which  he  had  vainly  sought,  was 
pleased  by  this  opening  avenue  to  a  field  of  action  whereon  these 
might  be  won ;  while  Washington,  thoughtful  and  reserved,  because 
he  communed  with  the  intuitions  of  his  loftier  spirit,  talked  little 
and  wisely  on  the  subject,  but  resolved  firmly  and  nobly.  All 
regarded  the  event  as  the  severing  blow  to  colonial  allegiance ;  but 


5:28  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

only  Washington,  with  the  clear  eye  of  faith  given  him  by  inspira 
tion,  seemed  to  perceive  the  glorious  end  in  the  dim  future. 

As  we  have  observed,  the  prompt  action  of  Patrick  Henry  had  qui 
eted  the  excitement  concerning  the  powder,  and  on  the  morning  of 
the  fifth  of  May,  Washington,  accompanied  by  Henry  and  Benjamin 
Harrison  (who  had  supped,  lodged,  and  breakfasted  at  Mount  Ver- 
non),  started  for  Philadelphia.  They  arrived  at  Chester  on  the 
ninth,  and  while  proceeding  toward  Philadelphia  with  other  dele 
gates  from  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  Maryland,  and  Delaware,  they 
were  met  by  a  cavalcade  of  about  five  hundred  gentlemen,  six 
miles  from  the  city.  At  Gray's  ferry,  a  company  of  riflemen  and 
of  infantry,  with  a  band  of  music,  "  met  them,  and  conducted  them 
through  the  city  with  great  parade."*  On  the  following  day,  at 
about  one  o'clock,  most  of  the  New  England  delegates  arrived  on 
horseback,  and  were  met  and  escorted  into  the  city  with  similar 
parade. 

On  Wednesday,  the  tenth  of  May,  1775,  the  second  continental 
Congress  commenced  its  session  in  Carpenters'  Hall,  at  eleven 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  The  Honorable  Peyton  Eandolph,  of  Vir 
ginia,  was  unanimously  chosen  president,  Charles  Thomson,  secre 
tary,  and  Andrew  M'Neare,  doorkeeper.  On  motion,  it  was  agreed 
that  the  Congress  should  be  opened  every  morning  with  prayer ; 
and  Messrs.  Willing,  Sullivan,  and  Bland,  were  appointed  a  commit 
tee  to  invite  the  Keverend  Jacob  Duche  to  officiate.  This  com 
prised  the  business  of  the  first  day  of  the  session.  On  the  follow 
ing  morning,  after  prayers,  the  delegates  from  the  several  colonies 
presented  their  credentials,  and  the  regular  business  was  opened  by 
resolving,  unanimously,  "  That  the  doors  be  kept  shut  during  the 
time  of  business,  and  that  the  members  consider  themselves  under 
the  strongest  obligations  of  honor  to  keep  the  proceedings  secret, 
until  the  majority  shall  direct  them  to  be  made  public."  At  that 
time  all  the  colonies  were  represented,  except  Georgia  and  Rhode 
Island.  On  the  thirteenth  a  delegate  from  St.  John's  parish,  in 
Georgia,  appeared,  and  was  admitted  to  a  seat ;  and  two  days  after- 

*  Marshall's  Diary,  page  28. 


POWERS  OF  CONGRESS.  529 

ward  delegates  from  Rhode  Island  also  appeared  and  took  their 
seats. 

This  Congress,  according  to  the  terms  of  appointment,  was  no 
more  a  legislative  body  than  that  of  1774 ;  but  the  circumstances 
of  the  country  had  so  changed  within  a  few  months,  that  it  became, 
necessarily,  legislative  as  well  as  deliberative.  Civil  war  had  com 
menced.  Blood  had  been  shed  and  petitions  and  remonstrances 
were  at  an  end.  By  common  consent  the  general  Congress  was 
regarded  as  the  arbiter  and  director  of  the  public  affairs  of  the  con 
federated  nation  —  the  supreme  legislature.  The  provincial  Con 
gress  of  Massachusetts  acknowledged  this  when,  on  the  third  of 
May,  a  communication  from  that  body,  addressed  to  the  continental 
Congress,  said,  "  The  sudden  exigency  of  our  public  affairs  precluded 
the  possibility  of  waiting  for  your  direction  in  these  important  measures 
[raising  and  providing  for  an  army]  ;"  and  by  asking  for  its  direc 
tion  and  assistance,  and  suggesting  that  an  American  army  should 
be  forthwith  raised.  A  similar  acknowledgment  came  from  New 
York,  when  the  advice  of  Congress  was  asked  concerning  the 
proper  conduct  of  the  inhabitants  there,  when  expected  British 
troops  from  Ireland  should  arrive.  Perceiving  the  responsibility 
thus  being  laid  upon  them,  and  the  importance  of  assuming  it,  the 
Congress,  on  the  sixteenth  of  May  (the  day  after  the  admission  of 
the  Rhode  Island  delegation,  made  the  representation  of  all  the 
colonies  complete),  "resolved  itself  into  a  committee  of  the  whole, 
to  take  into  consideration  the  state  of  America."* 

Assuming  the  control  of  continental  affairs,  the  Congress  pro 
ceeded  vigorously  but  cautiously,  to  put  the  country  in  a  state  of 
defence.  Intelligence  of  the  capture  of  Ticonderoga  reached  Phil 
adelphia  on  the  morning  of  the  eighteenth  of  May,  and  produced 
feelings  of  mingled  exultation  and  anxiety.  The  event  was  in 
spiriting,  but  Congress  was  unwilling  to  be  instrumental  in  widen 
ing  the  breach  unnecessarily.  Accordingly,  on  the  same  day,  it 
recommended  that  the  committees  of  the  cities  and  counties  of 
New  York  and  Albany  should  remove  all  the  spoils  taken  at  Ticon- 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  edition  of  1800,  i.,  95. 

34 


530  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

deroga  to  the  south  end  of  Lake  George,  where  they  might  not  be 
recaptured  by  any  force  from  Canada ;  and  "  that  an  exact  inven 
tory  be  taken  of  all  such  cannons  and  stores,  in  order  that  they 
may  be  safely  returned,  when  the  restoration  of  the  former  har 
mony  between  Great  Britain  and  their  colonies,  so  ardently  wished 
for  by  the  latter,  shall  render  it  prudent  and  consistent  with  the 
overruling  law  of  self-preservation."  There  wras  still  a  lingering 
feeling  of  attachment  to  Great  Britain ;  and  the  most  conservative 
of  the  members,  among  whom  Washington  may  be  ranked,  still  re 
tained  hopes,  though  feeble,  that  a  reconciliation  might  be  effected. 
Hence  the  caution  exhibited  in  these  proceedings  of  Congress. 

But  this  caution  did  not  overrule  the  prudence  of  Congress. 
Committees  were  appointed  to  prepare  reports  on  military  meas 
ures,  of  every  kind,  in  the  form  of  recommendations  concerning 
what  posts  should  be  occupied;  how  to  procure  ammunition  and 
military  stores ;  what  money  would  be  necessary ;  and  to  prepare 
rules  and  regulations  for  the  government  of  an  army.  Washington 
was  appointed  chairman  of  all  these  committees,  and  by  this  mark 
of  confidence,  Congress  evinced  its  appreciation  of  his  eminent 
executive  abilities. 

On  the  twenty-sixth  the  conciliatory  resolutions  of  Lord  North 
were  laid  before  Congress ;  and  the  significant  commentary  upon 
them,  made  by  that  body  on  the  same  day,  was  a  resolution  that 
the  colonies  should  be  "  immediately  put  in  a  state  of  defence."  At 
the  same  time  a  "humble  and  dutiful  petition  to  the  king"  was 
moved,  while  the  colony  of  New  York  was  strongly  urged  not  to 
relax  its  vigilance  and  its  preparations  for  defence. 

The  motion  to  petition  his  majesty  was  vehemently  opposed, 
especially  by  the  New  England  delegates.  John  Adams  considered 
it  an  imbecile  and  temporizing  measure,  calculated  to  embarrass  the 
proceedings  of  Congress,  and  to  give  the  ministry  time  to  send 
fleets  and  armies,  while  the  Americans  were  vainly  waiting  to  hear 
words  of  royal  clemency.  The  motion  was  carried,  however,  but 
its  advocates,  as  well  as  its  opponents,  went  on  vigorously  in  prepar 
ations  to  meet  the  wrath  of  offended  Britain.  The  Congress  evi- 


/Er.  43.]  DALLIANCE  WITH  CANADA.  531 

rlently  considered  it  more  as  a  formality  than  a  means  of  usefulness 
at  that  time,  for  they  had  been  taught  by  remembered  experience, 
not  to  put  their  "  trust  in  princes." 

It  was  important  to  bring  the  Canadians  into  the  union,  and 
efforts  toward  that  end  were  made  in  and  out  of  Congress  during 
the  summer,  which  proved  ultimately  detrimental  to  the  cause. 
On  the  twenty -ninth  an  address  "To  the  Oppressed  Inhabitants  of 
Canada"  was  approved  by  Congress ;  and  on  the  following  day  a 
letter  was  received  from  Colonel  Arnold,  at  Crown  Point,  informing 
that  body  that  a  considerable  number  of  British  regulars  were  at 
St.  John,  on  the  Sorel,  preparing  to  invade  northern  New  York. 
Congress  thereupon  recommended  the  authorities  of  New  York  and 
Connecticut  to  take  immediate  measures  to  strengthen  Ticonderoga 
and  Crown  Point ;  but,  cautious,  and  hoping  to  secure  the  allegiance 
of  the  Canadians,  it  was  resolved,  on  the  first  of  June,  "that  no 
expedition  or  incursion  ought  to  be  undertaken  or  made,  by  any 
colony  or  body  of  colonists,  against  or  into  Canada."*  This  resolu 
tion,  which  defeated  the  hopes  and  desires  of  Ethan  Allen  and 
others,  who  were  anxious  to  invade  Canada  immediately,  was  trans 
lated  into  the  French  language,  and  circulated  in  that  province, 
with  the  letter  to  the  inhabitants  just  referred  to. 

Notwithstanding  these  loyal  and  cautious  measures,  the  work  of 
preparation  for  war  went  vigorously  forward,  but  not  in  unmind- 
fulness  of  the  Source  of  all  strength,  for  a  day  of  national  fasting, 
humiliation,  and  prayer  was  appointed.*)*  Then  the  armed  yeo 
manry  at  Boston  were  adopted  by  Congress,  and  with  other  forces 
raised  or  to  be  raised  for  the  defence  of  the  colonies,  became  known 
as  the  "  American  Continental  Army." J  It  was  also  resolved,  on 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  edition  of  1800,  i.,  104. 

t  They  appointed  the  twentieth  of  July  for  that  purpose.  Marshall,  in  his  diary  of  the  thirtieth 
of  June,  says,  "  This  being  monthly  meeting  [of  the  quakers]  it  is  said  J  *  *  P  *  *  [James  Pem- 
berton]  took  much  pains  in  endeavoring  to  persuade  the  auditors,  and  they,  their  acquaintances,  by 
no  means  to  keep  the  twentieth  of  next  month  as  a  day  of  prayer  and  fasting,  but  to  keep  open 
shop  and  houses.  This  was,  in  plain  terms,  saying,  you  may  frolic  as  much  as  you  please  on  that 
day,  but  don't,  by  any  means,  suffer  yourselves  to  be  humble,  or  praying  on  that  day,  because  it  is 
appointed  by  the  delegates  for  that  service,  to  pray  and  worship  God."  In  the  resolution  appointing 
this  fast-day,  Congress,  for  the  first  time,  styled  the  confederation  "  The  Twelve  United  Colonies." 

|  See  Form  of  Enlistment,  Journals  of  Congress,  edition  of  1800,  i.,  111. 


532  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  fourteenth  of  June,  "  that  six  companies  of  expert  riflemen  be 
immediately  raised  in  Pennsylvania,  two  in  Maryland,  and  two  in 
Virginia,"  each  company  to  consist  of  sixty-eight  privates,  besides 
officers,  and  to  join  the  army  at  Boston  as  soon  as  possible,  there  to 
serve  as  light  infantry.* 

And  now  a  subject  of  greatest  import  occupied  the  attention  of 
Congress.  A  man  was  to  be  selected  to  lead  the  "  American  conti 
nental  army,"  and  accordingly,  on  Thursday,  the  fifteenth  of  June, 
Congress  resolved  "that  a  general  be  appointed  to  command  all 
the  continental  forces,  raised  or  to  be  raised,  for  the  defence  of 
American  liberty ;"  and  "  that  five  hundred  dollars,  per  month,  be 
allowed  for  the  pay  and  expenses  of  the  general."  This  was  a 
most  difficult  and  delicate  task,  and  yet  it  was  one  that  would  not 
admit  of  delay.  The  critical  condition  of  the  army  at  Boston 
demanded  immediate  action,  for  all  was  confusion.  Without  muni 
tions  of  war,  without  arms,  without  clothing,  and  without  pay,  it 
was  on  the  eve  of  dissolution,  and  New  England  legislatures,  com 
mittees,  and  individuals,  as  well  as  the  commanders  of  the  motley 
forces,  were  importuning  Congress  to  act  with  promptness  and 
efficiency. 

General  Ward  was  at  the  head  of  the  army,  doing  his  best,  but 
it  was  conceded  that  he  did  not  possess  all  the  requisites  of  a  skilful 
and  judicious  commander,  so  essential  for  the  important  service 
now  to  be  performed ;  and  it  was  evident  in  Congress,  that  the 
southern  delegates  were  desirous  of  having  a  southern  man  ap 
pointed  to  the  chief  command.  They  could  not  bear  the  idea  of  a 
New  England  army,  commanded  by  a  New  England  general.  This 
local  jealousy  produced  the  embarrassment.  Whether  it  was  real 
or  feigned — whether  it  arose  from  principle  or  pride,  was  of  no 
consequence.  It  existed  and  had  to  be  met  in  a  conciliatory  spirit. 

The  story  of  the  scene  on  that  occasion  is  well  told  by  John 
Adams,  who  was  a  conspicuous  actor.  "  The  intention,"  he  says, 
"  was  very  visible  to  me,  that  Colonel  Washington  was  their  object ; 
and  so  many  of  our  stanchest  men  were  in  the  plan,  that  we  could 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  110 


Mr.  43.]  ADAMS'S  NARRATIVE.  533 

cany  nothing  without  conceding  to  it.  Another  embarrassment, 
which  was  never  publicly  known,  and  which  was  carefully  con 
cealed  by  those  who  knew  it,  was,  that  the  Massachusetts  and  other 
New  England  delegates  were  divided.  Mr.  Hancock  and  Mr.  Gush 
ing  hung  back;  Mr.  Paine  did  not  come  forward,  and  even  Mr. 
Samuel  Adams  was  irresolute.  Mr.  Hancock  himself  had  an  ambi 
tion  to  be  appointed  commander-in-chief.  Whether  he  thought  an 
election  a  compliment  due  to  him,  and  intended  to  have  the  honor 
of  declining  it,  or  whether  he  would  have  accepted,  I  know  not. 
To  the  compliment  he  had  some  pretensions,  for,  at  that  time,  his 
exertions,  sacrifices,  and  general  merits  in  the  cause  of  his  country, 
had  been  incomparably  greater  than  those  of  Colonel  Washington. 
But  the  delicacy  of  his  health,  and  his  entire  want  of  experience  in 
actual  service,  though  an  excellent  militia  officer,  were  decisive 
objections  to  him,  in  my  mind.  In  canvassing  this  subject,  out  of 
doors,  I  found,  too,  that  even  among  the  delegates  of  Virginia  there 
were  difficulties.  The  apostolical  reasonings  among  themselves, 
which  should  be  greatest,  were  not  less  energetic  among  the  saints 
of  the  ancient  dominion,  than  they  were  among  us  of  New  England. 
In  several  conversations,  I  found  more  than  one  very  cool  about 
the  appointment  of  Washington,  and  particularly  Mr.  Pendleton 
was  very  clear  and  full  against  it. 

"  Full  of  anxieties  concerning  these  confusions,  and  apprehending 
daily  that  we  should  hear  very  distressing  news  from  Boston,  I 
walked  with  Mr.  Samuel  Adams  in  the  statehouse  yard,  for  a  little 
exercise  and  fresh  air,  before  the  hour  of  Congress,  and  there  repre 
sented  to  him  the  various  dangers  that  surrounded  us.  He  agreed 
to  them  all,  but  said,  '  What  shall  we  do  ?'  I  answered  him,  that 
he  knew  I  had  taken  great  pains  to  get  our  colleagues  to  agree 
upon  some  plan,  that  we  might  be  unanimous ;  but  he  knew  that 
they  would  pledge  themselves  to  nothing ;  but  I  was  determined 
to  take  a  step  which  should  compel  them  and  all  the  other 
members  of  Congress,  to  declare  themselves  for  or  against  some 
thing.  CI  am  determined,  this  morning,  to  make  a  direct  motion 
that  Congress  should  adopt  the  army  before  Boston,  and  appoint 


534  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Colonel  Washington  commander  of  it.'     Mr.  Adams  seemed  to  think 
very  seriously  of  it,  but  said  nothing. 

"  Accordingly,  when  Congress  had  assembled,  I  rose  in  my  place, 
and  in  as  short  a  speech  as  the  subject  would  admit,  represented 
the  state  of  the  colonies,  the  uncertainty  in  the  minds  of  the  peo 
ple,  their  great  expectation  and  anxiety,  the  distresses  of  the  army, 
the  danger  of  its  dissolution,  the  difficulty  of  collecting  another, 
and  the  probability  that  the  British  army  would  take  advantage  of 
our  delays,  march  out  of  Boston,  and  spread  desolation  as  far  as 
they  could  go.  I  concluded  with  a  motion,  in  form,  that  Congress 
would  adopt  the  army  at  Cambridge,  and  appoint  a  general ;  that 
though  this  was  not  the  proper  time  to  nominate  a  general,  yet,  as 
I  had  reason  to  believe  this  was  a  point  of  the  greatest  difficulty,  I 
had  no  hesitation  to  declare,  that  I  had  but  one  gentleman  in  my 
mind  for  that  important  command,  and  that  was  a  gentleman  from 
Virginia  who  was  among  us,  and  very  well  known  to  all  of  us ;  a 
gentleman  whose  skill  and  experience  as  an  officer,  whose  inde 
pendent  fortune,  great  talents,  and  excellent  universal  character, 
would  command  the  approbation  of  all  America,  and  unite  the 
cordial  exertions  of  all  the  colonies  better  than  any  other  person 
in  the  Union.  Mr.  Washington,  who  happened  to  sit  near  the  door, 
as  soon  as  he  heard  me  allude  to  him,  from  his  usual  modesty, 
darted  into  the  library-room.  Mr.  Hancock  —  who  was  our  presi 
dent,*  which  gave  me  an  opportunity  to  observe  his  countenance 
while  I  was  speaking  on  the  state  of  the  colonies,  the  army  at 
Cambridge,  and  the  enemy — heard  me  with  visible  pleasure;  but 
when  I  came  to  describe  Washington  for  the  commander,  I  never 
remarked  a  more  sudden  and  striking  change  of  countenance. 

*  Mr.  Hancock  was  chosen  to  that  office  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  May,  when  Peyton  Randolph, 
the  president,  left  Philadelphia  to  attend  to  his  duties  as  speaker  of  the  Virginia  assembly,  which 
was  to  convene  on  the  first  of  June.  Mr.  Randolph  was  a  native  of  Virginia,  and  descended  from 
one  of  the  oldest  aristocratic  families  of  that  colony.  Like  other  young  men  of  his  class,  at  that 
time,  he  was  educated  in  England,  chose  the  profession  of  law,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty  seven  years, 
he  was  attorney  general  of  the  province.  That  was  in  the  year  1756.  He  was,  for  some  years,  a 
member  of  the  Virginia  assembly,  and  speaker  of  that  body.  He  resumed  his  seat  in  Congress,  on 
his  return  from  Virginia,  and  died  of  apoplexy,  at  the  country-house  of  Richard  Hills,  near  Phila 
delphia,  after  dinner,  on  Sunday,  the  twenty-second  of  October,  1775,  at  the  age  of  fifty-two  years. 
His  funeral  sermon  was  preached  in  Christ  church,  by  Mr.  Ducho,  on  the  twenty-fourth. 


•-'(.TON:    A    BIOGRAPHY.  [17?o. 

'•tjjnmander  of  it;      Mr.  Adams  seemed  t.u  think 
but  said  nothing. 

•<s  liad  assembled,  ]    rose  in  my  place. 
the  subject  would  admit,  represented 
ie  colonies.  : :       <;-  ,  •  .    -    ••     -.«     -.eo- 

ir  great  expectation  and  anxiety,  the  distresses  of  the  army, 
ic  danger  of  its  dissolution,  the  difficulty  of  collecting  another, 
i!  (  probability  that,  the  British  army  would  take  advantage  of 
in  a  iW    -!>rc-ad   desolation   .is   far  as 


•  ••  i   ui   '.'..- 

LO     Sl:. 


iliil.i  s.i.i  y.  i 

tie  gentleman  in  i\r\ 

a  gentleman  irom 

-.  jirid  very  >wn  to  all  of  us ;  a 

K.  ;   -ij?-1       "•••  lence  a,^  ant  officer,  whost:  in'1*:- 
itHMi,  gnv;>?   i^iieau-.    ^ui  excellent  universjil    rhanuter, 
ttn  n  of  u.11    Ajiierif-t.  and    r.mto    il-io 
-  of  all   the  colonies  better  than  any  other  r'er-'or. 
Mr.  Washington,  who  happened  to  sit  no 
he  heard  me  allude   to  him,  from  his  K  uai  inoi 
'he   library-room.     Mr.  Hancock — who  was  our  ) 
;  gave  me  an  opportunity  to  observe  ULS 
si>«;aUi.n'r  on  the  state  of  flu    *.-•-•!:-    th'o   ornrA 


m^ 


JET.  43.].  CHARACTER  OF  WASHINGTON.  537 

distinguished  situations  which  he  now  and  afterward  attained,  and 
the  arduous  duties  they  involved.  Calm,  modest,  and  reserved,  yet 
dignified,  intrepid,  inflexibly  firm  and  persevering ;  indefatigably 
industrious  and  methodical ;  just,  yet  merciful  and  humane  ;  frugal 
and  calculating,  yet  disinterested;  circumspect  yet  enterprising; 
serious,  virtuous,  consistent,  temperate,  and  sincere  —  his  moral 
portraiture  displays  a  blended  variety  of  excellence,  in  which  it  is 
difficult  to  assign  a  predominant  lustre  to  any  particular  grace, 
except,  perhaps,  a  grave,  majestic  composure.  Ever  superior  to 
Fortune,  he  enjoyed  her  smiles  with  moderation,  endured  her  frowns 
with  serenity,  and  showed  himself  alike  in  victory  forbearing,  and 
in  defeat  undaunted.  No  danger  or  difficulty  could  disturb  his 
equanimity,  and  no  disaster  paralyze  his  energy  or  dishearten  his 
confidence.  The  same  adverse  vicissitude  that  would  have  drained 
an  ordinary  breast  of  all  its  spirit,  served  but  to  call  forth  new 
streams  of  vigor  from  Washington's  generous  soul.  His  counte 
nance  and  general  aspect  corresponded  with  the  impression  pro 
duced  by  his  character.  Fixed,  firm,  collected,  and  resolved,  yet 
considerately  kind,  it  seemed  composed  for  dignity  and  high  exploit. 
A  sound  belief  in  the  divine  doctrines  of  Christianity,  he  was  punc 
tual  and  devout  in  discharging  every  public  and  private  office  of 
Christian  piety.  Perhaps  there  never  was  another  man  who  trod 
with  more  unsullied  honor  the  highest  ways  of  glory,  or  whose 
personal  character  and  conduct  exercised  an  influence  so  powerful 
and  so  beneficial  on  the  destiny  of  a  great  nation." 

Such  was  the  man  into  whose  hands  the  supreme  legislature  of 
THE  UNITED  COLONIES  placed  the  commission  and  sword  of  com- 
mander-in-chief  of  their  armies.  When  this  solemn  act  was  con 
summated,  the  house  adjourned.  When  it  was  convened  the  next 
morning,  President  Hancock  communicated  to  Washington,  offi 
cially,  the  notice  of  his  .appointment.  He  immediately  rose  in  his 
place,  and  said,  with  a  somewhat  faltering  voice : — - 

"  MR.  PRESIDENT  :  Though  I  am  truly  sensible  of  the  high  honor 
done  me  in  this  appointment,  yet  I  feel  great  distress,  from  a  con 
sciousness  that  my  abilities  and  military  experience  may  not  be 


538  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

equal  to  the  extensive  and  important  trust.  However,  as  the  Con 
gress  desire  it,  I  will  enter  upon  the  momentous  duty,  and  exert 
every  power  I  possess  in  their  service,  and  for  the  support  of  the 
glorious  cause.  I  beg  they  will  accept  my  most  cordial  thanks  for 
this  distinguished  testimony  of  their  approbation.  But,  lest  some 
unlucky  event  should  happen  unfavorable  to  my  reputation,  I  beg 
it  may  be  remembered,  by  every  gentleman  in  this  room,  that  I 
this  day  declare,  with  the  utmost  sincerity,  I  do  not  think  myself 
equal  to  the  command  I  am  honored  with.  As  to  pay,  sir,  I  beg 
leave  to  assure  the  Congress  that,  as  no  pecuniary  consideration 
could  have  tempted  me  to  accept  the  arduous  employment  at  the 
expense  of  my  domestic  case  and  happiness,  I  do  not  wish  to  make 
any  profit  from  it.  I  will  keep  an  exact  account  of  my  expenses. 
Those,  I  doubt  not,  they  will  discharge,  and  that  is  all  I  desire."* 

This  brief  speech  is  a  model  of  taste,  discretion,  directness,  and 
condensation.  It  was  delivered  on  an  occasion  when  the  souls  of 
most  men  would  have  found  expression  in  many  and  burning  words. 
But  Washington,  always  calm,  dignified,  and  modest,  expressed  in 
fewest  words,  the  feelings,  desires,  and  determinations,  that  pos 
sessed  him  at  that  moment;  and  every  man  in  his  presence  felt 
that  the  speaker  was  acting  under  the  conscious  influence  of  divine 
inspiration.  Great  and  to  be  coveted  as  was  the  honor  of  his  position, 
to  Washington  it  was  a  great  sacrifice  ;  and  in  the  act  and  terms  of 
acceptance  he  gave  himself  as  a  noble  victim  upon  the  altar  of 
freedom.  "  There  is  something  charming  to  me  in  the  conduct  of 
Washington,"  John  Adams  wrote  to  a  friend  ;  "  a  gentleman  of  one  of 
the  first  fortunes  upon  the  continent,  leaving  his  delicious  retirement, 
his  family  and  friends,  sacrificing  his  ease,  and  hazarding  all  in  the 
cause  of  his  country.  His  views  are  noble  and  disinterested."  And 
to  his  wife,  Adams  wrote :  "  I  hope  the  people  of  our  province  will 

*  Alluding  to  this  generous  proposition,  Lord  Byron  wrote — <- 

"  Great  men  have  always  scorned  great  recompenses  ; 

Epaminondas  saved  his  Thebes,  and  died, 
Not  leaving  even  his  funeral  expenses  : 

George  Washington  had  thanks,  and  naught  beside, 
Except  the  all-cloudless  glory  (which  few  men's  is) 
To  free  his  country." 


/Ex.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  LETTER  TO  HIS  WIFE.  539 

treat  the  general  with  all  that  confidence  and  affection,  that  polite 
ness  and  respect,  which  is  due  to  one  of  the  most  important  char 
acters  in  the  world.  The  liberties  of  America  depend  upon  him,  in 
a  great  degree." 

Ardently  attached  to  his  wife,  his  friends,  his  home,  and  the 
pleasures  of  social  enjoyment  and  domestic  repose,  it  was  hard  for 
Washington  to  leave  all  these,  at  the  call  of  his  country,  without 
even  returning  to  bid  them  farewell.  He  made  the  sacrifice  cheer 
fully,  however,  having  no  other  concern  than  distrust  in  his  ability 
to  satisfy  the  expectations  of  the  nation,  and  the  pain  his  absence 
and  danger  would  give  his  wife  and  friends.  To  his  wife  he  wrote 
an  affectionate  letter,  on  the  eighteenth.  After  speaking  of  his 
appointment,  and  the  necessity  for  his  proceeding  immediately  to 
Boston,  he  said :  "  You  may  believe  me,  my  dear  Patsy,  when  I 
assure  you,  in  the  most  solemn  manner,  that,  so  far  from  seeking 
this  appointment,  I  have  used  every  endeavor  in  my  power  to 
avoid  it,  not  only  from  my  unwillingness  to  part  with  you  and  the 
family,  but  from  a  consciousness  of  its  being  a  trust  too  great  for 
my  capacity,  and  that  I  should  enjoy  more  real  happiness  in  one 
month  with  you,  at  home,  than  I  have  the  most  distant  prospect  of 
finding  abroad,  if  my  stay  were  to  be  seven  times  seven  years. 
But  as  it  has  been  a  kind  of  destiny  that  has  thrown  me  upon  this 
service,  I  shall  hope  that  my  undertaking  is  designed  to  answer 
some  good  purpose....  It  was  utterly  out  of  my  power  to  refuse 
this  appointment,  without  exposing  my  character  to  such  censures 
as  would  have  reflected  dishonor  upon  myself,  and  given  pain  to 
my  friends.  This,  I  am  sure,  could  not,  and  ought  not,  to  be  pleas 
ing  to  you,  and  must  have  lessened  me  considerably  in  my  own 
esteem.  I  shall  rely,  therefore,  confidently  on  that  Providence, 
which  has  heretofore  preserved  and  been  bountiful  to  me,  not 
doubting  but  I  shall  return  safe  to  you  in  the  fall."* 

On  the  twentieth  Washington  received  his  commission  from  the 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  iii..  2.  "This  is  the  only  letter  from  Washington 
to  his  wife,"  says  Doctor  Sparks,  "  which  has  come  into  my  hands.  It  is  understood,  that  Mrs. 
Washington  destroyed  all  of  his  other  letters  to  her,  a  short  time  before  her  death." 


540  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

president  of  Congress,*  and  on  that  day  he  wrote  to  the  captains 
of  the  independent  companies  of  Virginia,  and  to  his  brother,  John 

*  The  following  is  the  form  of  that  commission  : — 

"  The  delegates  of  the  United  Colonies  of  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts  Bay,  Rhode  Island, 
Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  the  counties  of  Newcastle,  Kent,  and  Sussex, 
on  the  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Carolina : — 

"  To  GEORGE  WASHINGTON,  ESQUIRE. 

"  We,  reposing  special  trust  and  confidence  in  your  patriotism,  conduct,  and  fidelity,  do,  by 
these  presents,  constitute  and  appoint  you  to  be  general  and  commander-in-chief  of  the  army  of  the 
United  Colonies,  and  of  all  the  forces  raised,  or  to  be  raised  by  them,  and  of  all  others  who  shall 
voluntarily  offer  their  service,  and  join  the  said  army  for  the  defence  of  American  liberty,  and 
for  repelling  every  hostile  invasion  thereof;  and  you  are  hereby  vested  with  full  power  and  authority 
to  act  as  you  shall  think  for  the  good  and  welfare  of  the  service. 

"  And  we  do  hereby  strictly  charge  and  require  all  officers  and  soldiers  under  your  command  to  be 
obedient  to  your  orders,  and  diligent  in  the  exercise  of  their  several  duties. 

"  And  we  do  also  enjoin  and  require  you  to  be  careful  in  executing  the  great  trust  reposed  in  you, 
by  causing  strict  discipline  and  order  to  be  observed  in  the  army,  and  that  the  soldiers  are  duly  exer 
cised,  and  provided  with  all  convenient  necessaries. 

"  And  you  are  to  regulate  your  conduct,  in  every  respect,  by  the  rules  and  discipline  of  war  (as  here 
given  you),  and  punctually  to  observe  and  follow  such  directions,  from  time  to  time,  as  you  shall 
receive  from  this  or  a  future  Congress  of  these  United  Colonies,  or  committee  of  Congress. 
"  This  commission  is  to  continue  in  force  until  revoked  by  this  or  a  future  Congress. 

"  By  order  of  Congress.  "JOHN  HANCOCK,  President. 

"Philadelphia,  June  19th,  1775. 

"Attest,  CHARLES  THOMSON,  Secretary" 

This  commission,  and  the  instructions  for  the  commander-in-chief,  were  prepared  by  a  committee, 
consisting  of  Richard  Henry  Lee,  Edward  Rutledge,  and  John  Adams.  The  original  commission 
is  carefully  preserved  in  a  glass  case,  with  other  mementoes  of  Washington,  in  the  Smithsonian 
Institution,  Washington  city.  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  instructions  : — 

"  This  Congress  having  appointed  you  to  be  general  and  commander-in-chief  of  the  army  of  the 
United  Colonies,  of  all  the  forces  raised  or  to  be  raised  by  them,  and  of  all  others  who  shall  vol 
untarily  offer  their  service,  and  join  the  said  army  for  the  defence  of  American  liberty,  and  for 
repelling  every  hostile  invasion  thereof,  you  are  to  repair  with  all  expedition  to  the  colony  of  Mas 
sachusetts  Bay,  and  take  charge  of  the  army  of  the  United  Colonies.  For  your  better  direction  :  — 

"  1.  You  are  to  make  a  return  to  us  as  soon  as  possible  of  all  forces,  which  you  shall  have  under 
your  command,  together  with  their  military  stores  and  provisions ;  and  also  as  exact  an  account  as 
you  can  obtain  of  the  forces  which  compose  the  British  army  in  America. 

"2.  You  are  not  to  disband  any  of  the  men  you  find  raised  until  further  direction  from  this  Con 
gress  ;  and  if  you  shall  think  their  numbers  not  adequate  to  the  purpose  of  security,  you  may  recruit 
them  to  a  number  you  shall  think  sufficient,  not  exceeding  double  that  of  the  enemy. 

"  3.  In  all  cases  of  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  death  or  removal  of  a  colonel,  or  other  inferior 
officer,  you  are  by  brevet,  or  warrant  under  your  seal,  to  appoint  another  person  to  fill  up  such 
vacancy,  until  it  shall  otherwise  be  ordered  by  the  provincial  convention,  or  the  assembly  of  the 
colony  from  whence  are  the  troops  in  which  such  vacancy  happens,  shall  direct  otherwise. 

"4.  You  are  to  victual,  at  the  continental  expense,  all  such  volunteers  as  have  joined  or  shall 
join  the  united  army. 

"  5.  You  shall  take  every  method  in  your  power,  consistent  with  prudence,  to  destroy  or  make 
prisoners  of  all  persons  who  now  are,  or  who  hereafter  shall  appear,  in  arms  against  the  good  people 
of  the  United  Colonies. 

"  6.  And  whereas,  all  particulars  can  not  be  foreseen,  nor  positive  instructions  for  such  emergen 
cies  so  beforehand  given,  but  that  many  things  must  be  left  to  your  prudent  and  discreet  manage 
ment,  as  occurrences  may  arise  upon  the  place,  or  from  time  to  time  fall  out,  you  are,  therefore, 
upon  all  such  accidents,  or  any  occasions  that  may  happen,  to  use  your  best  circumspection  ;  and,  ad 
vising  with  your  council  of  war,  to  order  and  dispose  of  the  said  army  under  your  command,  as  may 


jE-r.  43.]          WASHINGTON'S  DEPARTURE  FOR  CAMBRIDGE.  541 

Augustine  Washington.  To  the  former  he  communicated  the  intel 
ligence  of  his  appointment,  and  conjured  them,  by  no  means,  to 
relax  in  the  discipline  of  their  respective  companies.  To  the  latter 
he  also  communicated  the  fact  of  his  position,  assured  his  brother 
that  it  was  not  sought  by  himself,  and  declared  his  conviction  that 
it  required  greater  abilities  and  much  more  experience  than  he 
possessed,  "to  conduct  a  business  so  extensive  in  its  nature,  and 
arduous  in  the  execution."  Then,  his  thoughts  recurring  to  his  be 
loved  wife,  he  tenderly  said,  "  I  shall  hope  that  my  friends  will  visit 
and  endeavor  to  keep  up  the  spirits  of  my  wife,  as  much  as  they  can, 
for  my  departure  will,  I  know,  be  a  cutting  stroke  upon  her ;  and 
on  this  account  alone,  I  have  many  disagreeable  sensations.  I  hope 
that  you  and  my  sister,  though  the  distance  is  great,  will  find  so 
much  time  this  summer  as  to  spend  a  little  at  Mount  Vernon." 

Washington  left  Philadelphia  on  the  morning  of  the  twenty-first  of 
June,  for  Cambridge,  to  take  command  of  the  army  there.  He  was 
escorted  out  of  the  city  by  several  companies  of  infantry,  rangers, 
riflemen,  artillery,  and  a  troop  of  light-horse,  in  all  about  two  thou 
sand  men,  whom  he  had  already  reviewed,  at  the  request  of  their 
officers.  The  troop  of  light-horse  accompanied  him  to  New  York, 
and  shared  in  the  reception  honors  which  awaited  the  commander- 
in-chief  at  every  step. 

be  most  advantageous  for  the  obtaining  of  the  end  for  which  these  forces  have  been  raised,  making 
it  your  especial  care,  in  discharge  of  the  great  trust  committed  unto  you,  that  the  liberties  of  America 
receive  no  detriment." 


542  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   XLVIII. 

APPOINTMENT  OF  ARMY  OFFICERS LEE  AND  GATES WARD,  LEE,  SCHUYLER,  AND 

PUTNAM,  CHOSEN  MAJOR-GENERALS GATES  APPOINTED    ADJUTANT-GENERAL 

CHARACTERISTIC  SKETCHES EIGHT    BRIGADIERS    CHOSEN THEIR    NAMES    AND 

CHARACTERS CONTINENTAL    CURRENCY RULES    AND    REGULATIONS    FOR    THE 

ARMY EVENTS    IN    MASSACHUSETTS TREASURY-NOTES ARRIVAL  OF    BRITISH 

GENERALS GAGE'S    PROCLAMATION THE    AMERICAN    ARMY ITS    CHARACTER 

AND  APPOINTMENTS. 

WHEN  Congress  had  finished  the  important  business  of  appointing 
a  commander-in-chief  for  the  continental  army,  and  had  resolved  to 
maintain  and  assist  him,  and  adhere  to  him  with  their  lives  and 
fortunes,  they  proceeded  to  choose  other  general  officers,  by  ballot. 
This,  too,  was  a  delicate  business,  for  military  men  are  exceedingly 
sensitive  concerning  rank,  precedence,  and  other  punctilios. 

At  that  time  there  were  two  military  officers  residing  in  Virginia, 
who  had  been  educated  in  the  British  army,  made  pretensions  to 
much  military  knowledge,  and  were  ambitious  of  distinction.  These 
were  Charles  Lee  and  Horatio  Gates ;  the  former  already  holding 
the  commission  of  a  major-general,  obtained  in  the  Polish  service, 
and  the  latter  bearing  the  honor  of  a  majority  in  the  British  army. 
They  were  both  Englishmen  by  birth.  Lee  was  by  far  the  ablest 
man,  in  genius,  talent,  and  acquirements,  but  he  lacked  many  of 
the  high  moral  qualities  for  which  Gates  was  distinguished.  These 
men  had  both  espoused  the  American  cause,  and  were  looked  upon 
by  the  patriots  as  important  acquisitions.  They  had  been  frequent 
guests  at  Mount  Vernon ;  and  both,  doubtless,  aspired  to  be  second 
in  command,  when  they  saw  the  supreme  honor  conferred  upon  the 
noble  Virginian. 

Lee  was  some  months  older  than  Washington,  and  had  been  in 


JE-r.  43.]  NOTICE  OF  GENERAL  LEE.  543 

military  life  since  his  eleventh  year,  when  he  received  a  commis 
sion.  He  had  acquired  a  good  education  by  the  irregular  efforts  of 
a  quick,  apt,  and  energetic  mind.  At  his  majority  he  was  a  good 
Greek  and  Latin  scholar,  and  was  acquainted  with  several  of  the  mod 
ern  languages  of  Europe,  acquired  by  personal  experience  among 
the  people.  At  the  age  of  twenty-four  years  he  was  in  America, 
in  command  of  a  company  of  grenadiers,  engaged  in  the  conflicts 
of  the  French  and  Indian  war,  which  terminated  in  the  conquest  of 
Canada.  Pie  became  acquainted  with  the  warriors  of  the  Six 
Nations,  especially  with  those  of  the  Mohawk  valley,  whose  manly 
beauty,  stately  carriage,  free  dress,  and  romantic  character,  charmed 
him  exceedingly.  He  revelled  in  the  exuberance  of  young  man 
hood  among  those  children  of  the  forest ;  and  his  brave,  impetuous, 
and  restless  spirit,  always  surging  with  aspirations  for  new  action, 
so  captivated  the  Mohawks  in  turn,  that  they  adopted  him  into 
the  Bear  tribe,  as  a  chief,  and  gave  him  the  appropriate  and  signifi 
cant  name  of  Boiling-  Water. 

At  Ticonderoga  with  Abercrombie,  at  Niagara  with  Prideaux  and 
Johnson,  on  the  Ohio  with  a  few  companions,  and  on  the  St.  Law 
rence  with  Amherst,  Lee  was  always  distinguished  for  his  courage, 
impetuosity  and  skill,  in  conflict  and  in  strategy.  After  that  old 
war  was  over  he  went  to  England,  was  promoted  to  lieutenant- 
colonel,  joined  Burgoyne  on  the  river  Tagus,  in  Spain,  and  at 
the  head  of  a  corps  of  grenadiers,  distinguished  himself  by  a  bold 
and  successful  night  attack  upon  an  old  Moorish  castle,  occupied  by 
the  enemy. 

On  his  return  to  England,  Lee  found  his  country  greatly  excited 
by  political  questions.  Into  these  he  plunged  with  all  the  fiery 
strength  of  his  nature ;  and  he  wdelded  his  pen  against  the  ministry 
as  gallantly  as  he  had  wielded  his  sword  against  the  foes  of  Eng 
land.  Court  favor  was  thus  lost,  and  his  eagle  eye  and  impulsive 
nature  turned  toward  Poland,  then  on  the  verge  of  civil  war,  as  a 
theatre  for  glorious  action.  Thitherward  he  made  his  way.  He 
tarried  briefly  in  the  capital  of  the  great  Frederick  of  Prussia,  and 
was  cordially  entertained  by  that  monarch.;  and  at  Warsaw  he 


54 4  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

became  a  welcome  guest  at  the  table  and  in  the  household  of 
Poniatowsky,  the  newly-elected  king  of  that  country.  But  active 
service  was  denied  him  by  the  peaceful  current  of  events,  and  for 
two  years  he  indulged  in  the  inglorious  ease  of  a  royal  court. 
Then,  out  of  his  love  of  action  and  adventure,  he  accompanied  the 
Polish  embassador  toward  Constantinople.  Tired  of  that  function 
ary's  tardiness,  he  pushed  forward,  joined  some  Turks  on  their  way 
from  Moldavia,  and,  after  suffering  terrible  hardships  and  almost 
death  among  the  Bulgarian  mountains,  he  reached  Constantinople. 
He  soon  afterward  returned  to  England,  made  his  pen  felt  in  politi 
cal  strife  there  for  a  brief  season,  and  then  went  to  Poland. 

Erratic  as  a  meteor,  wTe  see  Lee,  in  the  lapse  of  a  few  years, 
flashing  here  and  there  in  the  lurid  sky  of  military  movements  on 
the  eastern  borders  of  the  continent;  and  in  1769,  as  major-general 
in  the  Polish  army,  he  fought  gallantly  in  a  severe  battle  between 
the  Russians  and  Turks,  in  Moldavia.  Then,  for  awhile,  he  disap 
peared  from  public  view,  while  roving  over  Italy,  Sicily,  Malta,  and 
southern  Spain,  half-sick,  irrascible,  and  quarrelsome,  and  engaging 
in  severe  contentions  and  occasional  duellos.  Again  in  England, 
his  pen  became  active  against  the  ministry;  and  so  well  was  its 
keenness  and  his  habitual  boldness  known,  that  the  letters  of  Junius 
were  attributed  to  him.  Finally,  in  1773,  he  came  to  America, 
travelled  in  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia,  and  in  1774, 
appeared  in  Boston.  His  presence  there,  at  that  time,  when  the 
colonial  rebellion  was  rapidly  rising,  made  the  British  officers  very 
uneasy,  and  they  reported  him  to  the  imperial  cabinet,  as  a  dan 
gerous  character,  and  doubtless  bent  on  exciting  a  general  revolt, 
in  order  to  become  a  leader  of  the  discontented  Americans.  That 
idea  stirred  the  fears  of  the  ministry,  and  Dartmouth  wrote  to 
Gage  these  cautious  words :  "  Have  an  attention  to  his  conduct, 
and  take  every  legal  method  to  prevent  his  effecting  any  of  those 
dangerous  purposes  he  is  said  to  have  in  view." 

For  almost  a  year  Lee  had  travelled,  written,  and  talked  in 
America,  and  had  become  an  itinerant  preacher  of  revolution,  when 
he  appeared  in  Philadelphia,  in  May,  1775,  a  close  observer  of  the 


MT.  43.]  WARD  AND  LEE  ELECTED  GENERALS.  545 

doings  of  Congress.  Too  restless  to  become  a  local  politician,  he 
was  now  in  New  England,  and  now  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania  ; 
and,  finally,  on  visiting  Major  Gates,  at  Berkeley,  in  Virginia,  he 
was  persuaded  by  that  gentleman  to  invest  what  little  he  possessed 
in  the  purchase  of  an  adjoining  estate.  He  had  but  recently  per 
formed  this  act  of  citizenship,  when  called  upon  by  Congress  to 
take  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  war  for  independence,  he  having 
been  chosen  one  of  the  four  major-generals  of  the  continental  army, 
on  Saturday,  the  seventeenth  of  June,  1775. 

Lee  was  nominated  for  the  next  in  command  to  General  Wash 
ington,  and  his  election  was  strongly  urged  by  Mifflin  and  others, 
not  only  on  account  of  his  superior  military  skill,  but  because  it 
was  thought  that  he  would  not  consent  to  be  third  on  the  list ;  and 
he  wras  a  character  of  too  much  importance  not  to  be  secured  at 
that  crisis.  Adams,  and  the  New  England  delegations  in  general, 
as  strongly  urged  the  appointment  of  General  Ward,  chiefly  because 
his  position,  as  commander-in-chief  of  the  army  at  Cambridge,  fairly 
entitled  him  to  that  honor.  General  Ward  was  a  Massachusetts 
man,  almost  fifty  years  of  age,  and  had  seen  some  service  in  the 
French  and  Indian  war.  He  had  been  a  member  of  the  legislature 
of  his  native  province,  and,  at  that  time,  held  a  responsible  judicial 
office.  As  a  personal  compliment,  rather  than  because  of  his  mili 
tary  merits,  General  Ward  was  elected  the  first  major-general ;  and 
Lee  was  elected  the  second.  A  committee  immediately  waited 
upon  Lee,  at  his  lodgings,  to  inform  him  of  his  appointment.  He 
accepted  it  without  hesitation,  much  to  the  relief  of  those  who  had 
fears  that  his  pride  would  stand  in  the  way.  But  his  own  words, 
previously  expressed,  in  relation  to  the  suspicion  that  he  was 
aspiring  to  be  the  leader  of  the  revolution,  were  sufficient  to  allay 
such  fears.  "To  think  myself  qualified  for  the  most  important 
charge  that  ever  was  committed  to  mortal  man,"  he  wrote,  "  is  the 
last  stage  of  presumption ;  nor  do  I  think  the  Americans  would  or 
ought  to  confide  in  a  man,  let  his  qualifications  be  ever  so  great, 
who  has  no  property  among  them." 

Lee's  appointment  gave  great  satisfaction,  for  the  American  peo- 

35 


546  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

pie  had  conceived  extravagant  ideas  concerning  his  great  military 
powers.  Some  went  so  far  as  to  call  him  "  the  Palladium  of  Ameri 
can  liberty !"  There  were  some,  however,  who  foresaw  difficulty, 
because  of  the  fiery  spirit,  love  of  adventure,  and  inordinate  ambi 
tion  of  Lee.  Subsequent  events  proved  the  justice  of  this  distrust. 

On  the  same  day  when  Ward  and  Lee  were  chosen  major-gen 
erals,  Congress  elected  Horatio  Gates  to  be  adjutant-general.  This 
was  a  judicious  appointment,  and  was  made  on  the  urgent  recom 
mendation  of  Washington.  Major  Gates  was  a  gentleman  in  man 
ners,  and  was  an  excellent  tactician  and  disciplinarian.  The  services 
of  such  an  officer  were  much  needed  in  the  organization  of  the 
army,  at  Cambridge,  about  to  be  made.  Gates  was  then  in  the 
prime  of  life ;  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  arts  and  blandish 
ments  of  good  society ;  social,  pliant,  obsequious,  and  vain.  His 
complexion  was  norid ;  his  person  commanding,  and  a  little  inclined 
to  corpulency,  and  his  deportment  extremely  winning.  He  was 
an  Englishman  by  birth,  and  common  rumor  assigned  his  paternity 
to  Horace  Walpole,  his  god-father,  whose  Christian  name  he  bore. 

Gates  was  well  educated,  and  at  an  early  age  entered  the  army, 
and  served  as  a  volunteer  under  Sir  Edward  Cornwallis,  governor 
of  Halifax.  In  the  expedition  under  Braddock  he  commanded  a 
New  York  independent  company,  and  was  severely  wounded  by 
the  passage  of  a  musket-ball  through  his  body,  on  the  field  of 
Monongahela.  He  wras  afterward  appointed  brigade-major ;  and,  in 
1762,  he  accompanied  General  Monckton,  as  aid-de-camp,  to  the 
West  Indies,  where  he  distinguished  himself  in  the  capture  of 
Martinieo.  Gates  carried  the  news  of  that  event  to  England,  and 
was  rewarded  by  the  appointment  of  major  to  a  regiment  of  foot. 
This  office  was  much  below  his  expectations,  and  he  retired  on  half- 
pay.  For  some  time  afterward  he  lingered  in  London,  a  courtier 
at  the  feet  of  the  rich  and  powerful,  petitioning  for  some  lucrative 
office,  for  he  had  a  dependent  family.  Disappointed  and  chagrined 
at  what  he  deemed  neglect,  he  sold  his  commission,  came  to  Amer 
ica  in  1772,  and  purchased  an  estate  in  Berkeley  county,  Virginia, 
in  the  valley  beyond  the  Blue  Ridge,  north  of  Winchester.  He 


Mr.  43.]         SCHUYLER  AND  PUTNAM  ELECTED  GENERALS.  547 

then  renewed  his  acquaintance  with  Washington,  and  became  a 
warm  partisan  of  the  American  cause.  Gates  had  aspired  to  the 
place  now  occupied  by  Lee,  but  he  cheerfully  accepted  the  lower 
station  of  a  brigadier  in  rank,  because  it  promised  preferment. 

On  Monday,  the  nineteenth  of  June,  Philip  Schuyler,  of  New 
York,  a  man  of  whom  it  might  be  as  truly  said,  as  of  the  Chevalier 
Bayard,  "  he  was  without  fear  and  without  reproach,"  was  chosen 
the  third  major-general,  and  the  veteran  Putnam,  of  Connecticut, 
the  fourth.  Schuyler  belonged,  by  birth  and  marriage,  to  some  of 
the  oldest,  wealthiest,  most  popular,  and  most  influential  of  the 
Dutch  families  in  New  York,  and  his  appointment  gave  great  satis 
faction  in  his  native  province.  He  had  entered  the  army  against 
the  French  and  Indians,  in  1755,  and  commanded  a  company  under 
Sir  William  Johnson.  Always  on  the  alert,  eminently  judicious, 
and  scrupulously  faithful  in  every  trust,  he  attracted  the  attention 
of  young  Lord  Howe,  in  1758,  who  placed  him  in  the  commissariat 
department.  He  accompanied  that  young  nobleman,  under  Aber- 
crombie,  in  the  expedition  against  Ticonderoga ;  and  when  Howe 
fell,  Schuyler,  then  bearing  the  commission  of  colonel,  was  intrusted 
with  the  sad  duty  of  conveying  the  mortal  remains  to  Albany  for 
interment.  After  the  war  he  was  active  in  the  colonial  assembly ; 
and,  in  that  body,  he  was  always  the  determined  opponent  of  the 
British  government,  in  its  oppressive  measures  toward  the  colonists. 
In  1775,  he  was  chosen  a  member  of  the  continental  Congress,  and 
was  in  attendance  at  Philadelphia  when  that  body  honored  him 
with  the  appointment  of  major-general. 

During  the  French  and  Indian  war,  Schuyler  had  seen  much  of 
the  daring  and  bravery  of  Putnam,  who  was  now  almost  sixty  years 
of  age,  and  he  was  pleased  with  the  appointment  of  that  officer  as 
his  associate  major-general.  He  knew  his  worth,  and  his  great  in 
fluence  among  the  New  England  people ;  and  for  these  adventitious 
qualities,  as  well  as  because  of  his  ability  as  a  soldier,  Putnam's 
appointment  was  very  satisfactory  to  the  command er-in-chief.  Put 
nam  had  seen  much,  and  hard,  and  varied  service,  having  been 
appointed  to  the  command  of  the  first  troops  raised  in  Connecticut 


548  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

for  the  French  and  Indian  war,  in  1755.  At  the  head  of  rangers 
and  in  other  service,  his  performances  through  the  whole  of  that 
war  were  very  important.  He,  too,  went  to  the  West  Indies  in 
1762,  in  command  of  a  Connecticut  regiment,  under  General 
Lyman;  and  after  great  hardships  and  frightful  experiences,  he 
returned,  and  was  soon  in  command  of  troops  sent  against  the 
Indians  on  the  great  lakes  of  the  northwest.  From  that  time  he 
had  been  a  quiet  farmer,  until  aroused  by  the  cry  of  blood  from 
Lexington,  when  all  the  fire  of  his  military  spirit  blazed  intensely, 
and  he  hastened  toward  Boston,  as  we  have  seen,  eager  to  strike 
for  his  country. 

The  eight  brigadier-generals  appointed  by  Congress,  on  the  twen 
ty-second  of  June,  were  named  in  the  following  order,  and  took  rank 
accordingly :  Seth  Pomeroy,  Richard  Montgomery,  David  Wooster, 
William  Heath,  Joseph  Spencer,  John  Thomas,  John  Sullivan,  and 
Nathanael  Greene.  Pomeroy  was  from  Northampton,  Massachu 
setts.  He  had  been  active  in  the  French  and  Indian  war ;  and  it  is 
supposed  that  his  bullet  wounded  the  Baron  Dieskau,  in  the  battle 
at  the  head  of  Lake  George,  in  1755.  He  was  already,  in  the 
camp  at  Boston,  commissioned  a  brigadier  by  the  provincial  Con 
gress  of  Massachusetts ;  and  while  the  continental  legislators  were 
considering  these  appointments,  he  was  fighting  on  Bunker's  hill,  as 
a  volunteer.  But  .Pomeroy  declined  the  proffered  commission. 
Spencer  then  took  rank  next  to  Putnam  in  the  army  at  Cambridge, 
and  Thomas,  who  was  Ward's  lieutenant,  was  made  first  brigadier. 

Montgomery  was  a  young  Irish  officer,  who  had  served  gallantly 
under  Wolfe,  and  also  in  the  West  Indies  in  1762.  He  had  married 
a  sister  of  Robert  R.  Livingston,  of  New  York,  and  was  residing 
upon  a  beautiful  estate  on  the  Hudson,  when  called  to  accept  the 
honor  of  a  brigadier's  commission  from  Congress.  Wooster  was  an 
old  man  of  sixty-five,  and  a  veteran  soldier.  He  was  a  native  of 
Connecticut,  and  had  held  the  commission  of  captain  in  the  expedi 
tion  against  Louisburg,  thirty  years  before.  He  had  served  first  as 
a  colonel  and  then  as  a  brigadier  in  the  French  and  Indian  war, 
and  was  one  of  the  principal  conspirators  against  Ticonderoga,  in 


JE-r.  43.]  THE  BRIGADIER-GENERALS.  549 

1775.  Notwithstanding  his  age  and  rank,  he  cheerfully  accepted 
the  office  of  third  brigadier,  for  he  was  an  ardent  patriot,  and  was 
ready  to  serve  his  country  in  any  capacity. 

Heath,  who  lived  to  become  the  last  survivor  of  the  major- 
generals  of  the  Revolution,  was  a  native  of  Roxbury,  and,  like 
Montgomery,  was  quite  a  young  man,  being  then  thirty-eight  years 
of  age.  As  early  as  1770,  he  had  employed  his  pen  in  urging  upon 
his  countrymen  the  necessity  of  military  discipline.  He  was  active 
in  organizing  and  drilling  the  militia  and  minute-men ;  and  he  was 
in  the  camp  at  Boston  when  appointed  a  brigadier.  Spencer  was  a 
native  of  East  Had  dam,  Connecticut,  and  was  past  sixty  years  of 
age.  He  had  served  in  the  campaigns  of  the  French  and  Indian 
war,  as  a  major  and  colonel.  Thomas  was  a  Plymouth  man,  and 
had  also  been  a  soldier  in  the  French  and  Indian  war.  He,  too, 
was  in  the  camp  at  Boston,  whither  he  had  come  at  the  head  of  a 
regiment  raised  by  himself  in  Kingston,  Massachusetts. 

Sullivan  was  a  fiery  young  soldier,  of  Irish  blood,  and  a  lawyer 
in  New  Hampshire.  He  espoused  the  patriot  cause  at  an  early 
hour,  and  was  a  member  of  the  first  continental  Congress.  After 
the  adjournment  of  that  body  he  was  very  active  in  promoting  the 
revolution  in  New  Hampshire.  His  zeal  and  military  taste  and 
skill,  commended  him  to  the  continental  Congress  as  worthy  of  a 
brigadier's  commission ;  and  a  perception  of  the  same  qualities  in 
Greene,  the  Rhode  Island  quaker,  caused  Congress  to  confer  the 
same  honor  upon  him.  Greene  and  Sullivan  were  of  the  same  age, 
both  having  been  born  in  the  year  1740. 

Such  were  the  chief  officers  chosen  by  Congress  to  assist  Wash 
ington  in  the  command  of  the  continental  army.  All  of  them, 
except  Lee,  Gates,  Schuyler,  and  Montgomery,  were  natives  and 
inhabitants  of  New  England ;  and  the  impromptu  army  assembled 
at  Boston,  received  the  intelligence  of  their  appointment  with  great 
satisfaction. 

Having  made  provisions  for  an  army,  the  next  care  of  Congress 
was  to  provide  the  "  sinews  of  war."  The  requisite  amount  of 
money  could  not  be  obtained  in  specie.  Having  been  deprived,  in 


550  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

a  great  measure,  of  commercial  intercourse  with  the  rest  of  the 
world,  by  the  unwise,  restrictive  policy  of  Great  Britain,  for  more 
than  a  hundred  years,  and  by  the  recent  acts  of  Parliament  and 
their  own  non-intercourse  policy,  the  colonies  saw  no  other  resource 
than  that  of  a  paper  currency.  The  New  York  convention^  fore 
seeing  the  necessity  of  such  a  measure,  had  already  considered  the 
subject,  and  a  few  weeks  previously,  a  committee  of  that  body 
had  reported  suggestions.  They  proposed  three  distinct  modes  of 
issuing  paper-money.  First,  that  each  colony  should  issue,  for 
itself,  the  sum  which  might  be  appropriated  to  it  by  Congress. 
Second,  that  the  United  Colonies  should  issue  the  whole  sum  neces 
sary,  and  each  colony  become  bound  to  sink  its  proportionate  part ; 
and,  third,  that  Congress  should  issue  the  whole  sum,  every  colon}7 
be  bound  to  discharge  its  proportion,  and  the  United  Colonies  be 
obliged  to  pay  that  part  which  any  colony  should  fail  to  discharge. 
The  convention  preferred  the  last  mode,  as  affording  higher  security 
to  the  bill-holders,  and,  of  consequence,  as  likely  to  obtain  more 
ready,  general,  and  confidential  circulation.*  It  was  also  believed, 
that  this  mutual  responsibility  would  be  an  additional  bond  of 
union  to  the  associated  colonies. 

The  third  proposition  was  substantially  adopted  by  the  Congress ; 
and  on  the  twenty-second  of  June,  they  "Resolved,  That  a  sum,  not 
exceeding  two  millions  of  Spanish  milled  dollars,  be  emitted  by  the 
Congress,  in  bills  of  credit,  for  the  defence  of  America."  Four 
weeks  afterward,  the  issuing  of  another  million  was  authorized  by 
Congress ;  and  twenty-eight  gentlemen  were  appointed  to  sign  these 
bills,  it  being  necessary  for  each  note  to  have  the  signature  of  two 
persons.*)*  The  faith  of  the  confederated  colonies  was  pledged  for 

*  Pitkin's  Political  and  Civil  History  of  the  United  States,  i.,  347.  Also,  Eecords  of  the  New 
York  Convention. 

t  Congress,  by  resolution,  specified  the  form  of  these  bills  as  follows  : — 

"  CONTINENTAL  CURRENCY. 
"  No. .  dollars. 

"  This  bill  entitles  the  bearer  to  receive Spanish  milled  dollars,  or  the  value  thereof  in 

gold  and  silver,  according  to  the  resolutions  of  the  Congress,  held  at  Philadelphia,  on  the  tenth  day 
of  May,  A.  D.  1775." 

The  paper  on  which  these  bills  were  printed  was  quite  thick,  and  the  British  called  it  "  the  paste 
board  money  of  the  rebels."     Thej  were  engraved  on  copper,  by  Paul  Revere,  of  Boston,  who  was 


MT.  43.]  CONTINENTAL  CURRENCY.  551 

their  redemption.  This  continental  currency,  to  which  we  shall 
have  other  occasions  to  allude,  was  of  incalculable  benefit  to  the 
struggling  colonists,  during  the  first  years  of  the  war,  for  it  was 
received  in  payment  without  hesitation.  But  at  the  end  it  became 
a  source  of  great  annoyance  to  the  federal  government,  and  of 
immense  loss  to  the  soldiers  of  the  army,  and  the  people  at  large. 

On  the  thirtieth  of  June,  Congress  agreed  upon  a  series  of  rules 
and  regulations  for  the  army,  sixty-nine  in  number.*  They  were 
drawn  up  with  great  care,  and  contained  minute  specifications 
concerning  the  powers  and  duties  of  officers  and  the  conduct  of 
the  soldiers.  The  first  article  required  each  officer  and  soldier  to 
subscribe  the  rules  and  regulations  at  the  time  of  receiving  his 
commission  or  enlistment.  Those  already  in  the  field  might  sub 
scribe  them,  or  continue  to  be  governed  by  rules  already  in  force, 
it  being  left  optional,  however,  with  the  commander-in-chief  to 
retain  or  dismiss  those  who  might  refuse  to  subscribe. 

While  the  continental  Congress  was  thus  making  arrangements  to 
engage  in  the  coming  struggle,  the  representatives  of  the  people  of 
Massachusetts,  where  war  actually  existed,  were  equally  vigilant 
and  active  in  preparations.  Early  in  May  the  provincial  Congress 
of  Massachusetts,  after  authorizing  the  emission  of  paper-money,  to 
the  amount  of  three  hundred  and  seventy-five  thousand  dollars,  in 
sums  suitable  for  a  circulating  medium,  and  .directing  the  receiver- 
general  to  borrow  that  amount  upon  those  notes  (which  bore  an 
interest  of  six  per  cent),  formally  repudiated  royal  power,  by  de 
claring  that  no  obedience  was  due  to  General  Gage  as  governor,  or 
in  any  other  capacity,  and  denouncing  him  as  "an  unnatural  and 
inveterate  enemy  of  the  country." 

a  very  active  patriot.  He  was  an  ingenious  mechanic,  and  made  the  press  on  which  the  faces  of  the 
bills  were  printed.  The  backs  were  printed  with  type,  and  bore  an  ornamental  border,  within  which 
was  printed  the  -denomination  of  the  bill,  the  place  and  year  of  its  issue,  and  the  names  of  the 
printers,  with  a  central  figure  of  a  leaf  and  flower,  or  leaves  and  stems.  The  type  printers,  were 
Hall  &  Sellers,  Philadelphia.  The  vignettes  and  mottoes  were  always  significant.  For  example: 
on  a  bill  before  me  is  a  candlestick,  with  thirteen  branches  and  burners,  denoting  the  number  of  the 
United  Colonies,  and  the  motto,  "  ONE  FIRE  AND  TO  THE  SAME  PURPOSE."  On  another,  a  thorn- 
bush  with  a  hand  grasping  it;  motto,  "SUSTAIN  OR  ABSTAIN."  One  issued  eighteen  days  after 
the  declaration  of  independence,  bears  the  figure  of  a  majestic  oak-tree ;  motto,  "  I  SHALL  FLOUR 
ISH  THROUGH  AGES  OF  AGES." 

*  These  were  materially  modified  a  few  months  afterward. 


552  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  May,  the  Cerbems,  man-of-war,  arrived  at 
Boston  with  several  transports,  bearing  three  distinguished  British 
generals — Howe,  Clinton,  and  Burgoyne.  They  came  with  false 
notions  of  the  strength,  temper,  and  resources  of  the  Americans, 
and  were  disposed  to  look  upon  the  revolution  now  begun,  as  a 
rebellion  that  might  be  crushed  in  a  few  weeks.  They  had  been 
positively  assured,  before  leaving  England,  that  submission  would 
be  tendered  to  them  so  immediately  on  their  arrival,  that  they 
would  have  no  occasion  to  unsheath  their  swords.  Thus  deluded, 
they  had  actually  prepared  themselves  for  the  enjoyment  of  hunt 
ing,  fishing,  and  other  amusements,  instead  of  engaging  in  military 
service ;  and  it  is  said  that  when  the  Cerberus  entered  Boston  har 
bor,  and  the  "  rebel  camp"  was  pointed  out,  that  boasting  coxcomb, 
Burgoyne,  exclaimed,  "  What !  ten  thousand  peasants  keep  five 
thousand  king's  troops  shut  up !  Well,  let  us  get  in,  and  we  wrill 
soon  find  elbow-room."*  This  haughty  contempt  for  the  Americans 
was  the  fatal  error  of  the  British  officers  during  the  earlier  years 
of  the  war. 

Feeling  strengthened  by  these  arrivals,  Gage  prepared  to  act 
vigorously  against  his  jailers,  resolved  no  longer  to  submit  to  such 
inglorious  restraint.  He  issued  a  proclamation  on  the  twelfth  of 
June,  insulting  in  words  and  menacing  in  tone.  It  declared  martial 
law ;  pronounced  those  in  arms  and  their  abettors,  to  be  "  rebels, 
parricides  of  the  constitution,"  and  offered  a  free  pardon  to  all  who 
should  forthwith  return  to  their  allegiance,  except  those  arch- 
offenders,  John  Hancock  and  Samuel  Adams,  who  were  outlawed, 
and  for  whose  apprehension  as  traitors,  a  reward  was  offered.  This 
arrogant  and  offensive  proclamation  exasperated  the  people,  and 
not  one  felt  a  desire  to  return  to  an  allegiance  so  degrading.  In 
the  meantime,  the  American  army  had  gradually  increased  in 
numbers,  and  fortifications  had  been  commenced  at  Cambridge 

*  "  The  elbow-room  general"  was  an  epithet  often  applied  to  Burgoyne,  in  the  satires  of  the  day. 
"He  used  to  relate,"  says  Frothingham,  "that  after  his  reverses,  while  a  prisoner-of-war,  he  was 
received  with  great  courtesy  by  the  Boston  people,  as  he  stepped  from  the  Charlestown  ferry-boat; 
but  he  was  really  annoyed  when  an  old  lady,  perched  on  a  shed  above  the  crowd,  cried  out  at  the 
top  of  a  shrill  voice  :  "  Make  way,  make  way  —  the  general  is  coming  !  Give  him  elbow-room  !" 


CHARACTER  OF  THE  AMERICAN  ARMY.  553 

and   Roxbmy.      Early  in  June  the  whole  force  amounted,  as  we 
have  observed,  to  about  sixteen  thousand  men. 

To  the  eye  of  military  experience,  and  to  that  of  the  faith  of 
patriots  relying  upon  such  an  instrumentality  to  defend  the  hearths 
and  homes  of  the  land  from  a  powerful  invader,  this  army,  though 
considerable  in  numbers,  seemed  utterly  inadequate  in  its  moral 
strength  and  its  material  panoply.  Neighbors  had  flocked  together, 
impelled  by  a  sense  of  common  danger ;  and  officers  and  privates 
of  the  hastily-formed  companies  frequently  stood  on  the  same 
social  level.  To  them  the  idea  of  military  discipline  was  only  a 
vague  glimmer  of  the  reality.  They  had  come  from  different 
provinces,  led  by  independent  commanders.  All  were  volunteers. 
The  relations  between  them  and  the  continental  Congress  had  not 
yet  been  established ;  and  as  each  man  was  (theoretically  at  least) 
master  of  his  own  desires  and  actions,  insubordination  in  the  army 
was  a  necessary  condition.  The  only  semblance  to  uniformity  and 
discipline  existed  in  the  corps  of  artillery,  partly  organized  under 
Colonel  Gridley.*  These  were  similarly  attired,  were  furnished  with 
good  field-pieces,  and  were  obedient  to  their  commissioned  head ; 
but  a  great  portion  of  their  sidearrns  were  returned  as  unfit  for 
service.  The  greater  portion  of  the  remainder  of  the  troops  were 
without  military  dress  or  accoutrements,  and  presented  a  really 
ludicrous  appearance.^ 

*  We  have  an  imperfect  view  of  the  actual  strength  of  the  battalion,  in  the  return  made  on  the 
sixteenth  of  June,  which  exhibited  ten  captains,  with  an  aggregate  of  four  hundred  and  seventeen 
men. 

t  An  eye-witness  gave  a  late  writer  a  graphic  description  of  the  appearance  of  a  single  company 
of  the  army,  just  before  the  battle  of  Bunker's  hill.  It  is  a  fair  picture  of  the  whole.  "  To  a  man," 
he  said,  "they  wore  small-clothes,  coining  down  and  fastening  just  below  the  knee,  and  long  stock 
ings,  with  cowhide-shoes  ornamented  by  large  buckles,  while  not  a  pair  of  boots  graced  the  com 
pany.  The  coats  and  waistcoats  were  loose  and  of  huge  dimensions,  with  colors  as  various  as  the 
barks  of  oak,  sumach,  and  other  trees  and  shrubs  of  our  hills  and  swamps  could  make  them.  Their 
shirts  were  all  made  of  flax,  and  like  every  other  part  of  the  dress,  were  home-made.  On  their 
heads  were  worn  large,  round-top,  and  broad-brimmed  hats.  Their  arms  were  as  various  as  their 
costume ;  here  an  old  soldier  carried  a  heavy  Queen  Anne's  musket,  with  which  he  had  done  ser 
vice  in  the  conquest  of  Canada,  many  years  before ;  while  by  his  side  walked  a  stripling  with  a 
Spanish  fusee,  not  half  its  weight  or  calibre,  which  his  grandfather  may  have  takeir  at  the  Havana ; 
while  not  a  few  had  old  French  pieces,  which  dated  back  to  the  siege  of  Louisburg.  Instead  of  a 
cartridge-box,  a  large  powder-horn  was  slung  under  the  arm,  and  occasionally  a  bayonet  might  be 
seen  bristling  in  the  ranks.  Some  of  the  swords  of  the  officers  had  been  made  by  our  province 
blacksmiths,  perhaps  from  some  farming  utensil,  and  appeared  serviceable,  but  heavy  and  uncouth." 
— Kidder's  History  of  New  Ipswich. 


554  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

The  position  of  the  American  army  was,  on  the  whole,  quite  a 
strong  one,  notwithstanding  the  line  was  extended  and  compara 
tively  weak  in  many  places.  The  right  wing,  under  General 
Thomas,  was  at  Roxbury,  and  consisted  of  four  thousand  Massachu 
setts  troops,  including  four  artillery  companies,  with  their  field- 
pieces,  and  some  heavier  cannon.  The  Rhode  Island  "army  of 
observation,"  under  Greene,  were  at  Jamaica  Plains;  and  near 
them  were  Spencer's  Connecticut  troops.  General  Ward  com 
manded  the  left  wing,  at  Cambridge,  which  consisted  of  fifteen 
Massachusetts  regiments,  a  battalion  of  artillery  under  Gridley,  and 
Putnam's  regiment  and  other  Connecticut  troops.  Paterson's  regi 
ment  was  stationed  at  a  redoubt  cast  up  at  the  foot  of  Prospect  hill, 
and  a  large  guard  was  at  Lechmere's  point.  The  great  body  of  the 
Connecticut  troops  were  at  Inman's  farm.  There  was  part  of  a 
regiment,  under  Colonel  Gerrish,  at  Chelsea ;  Stark's  regiment  was 
at  Medford,  and  Reid's  was  at  Charlestown  Neck,  with  sentinels 
reaching  to  Penny  ferry  (now  Maiden  bridge)  and  Bunker's  hill.* 

Such  were  the  numbers,  position,  character,  and  condition  of  the 
forces  around  Boston,  when  they  were  adopted  by  Congress  as  the 
AMERICAN  CONTINENTAL  ARMY. 

*  See  Frothingham's  "History  of  the  Siege  of  Boston."  This  work  contains  a  very  minute 
account  of  every  transaction  in  that  siege,  from  the  skirmishes  at  Lexington,  to  the  evacuation  of 
Boston  by  the  British. 


43.]  DESIRES  FOR  CONFLICT.  555 


CHAPTEE   XLIX. 

IMPATIENCE  OF  THE    BELLIGERENTS    TROOPS INTENDED    MOVEMENTS BUNKER'S 

HILL    TO    BE  FORTIFIED  BY  THE    AMERICANS A  PARTY  SENT  FOR    THE    PURPOSE 

THE    NIGHT    LABOR ASTONISHMENT    OF    THE    BRITISH    IN    THE    MORNING A 

CANNONADE COMMOTION  IN  BOSTON FORTICATIONS  ON  BREED'S  HILL  FIN 
ISHED LANDING  OF  THE  BRITISH THE  PATRIOTS  IN  THE  REDOUBT PREPAR 
ATIONS  FOR  CONFLICT A  NOVEL  BREASTWORK BATTLE  OF  "BUNKER'S  HILL" 

DEATH  OF  GENERAL  WARREN HIS  CHARACTER. 

THE  second  act  in  the  sanguinary  drama  of  the  Revolution  was 
now  about  to  open.  Strengthened  by  the  arrival  of  fresh  troops, 
and  encouraged  by  the  presence  of  Howe,  Clinton,  and  Burgoyne, 
General  Gage  resolved  to  extend  his  rule  beyond  the  narrow  limits 
of  the  peninsula  of  Boston.  Already  both  parties  had  endeavored 
to  seize  the  hogs,  sheep,  and  cattle  upon  the  islands  in  Boston 
harbor,  and  in  these  efforts  collisions  had  frequently  occurred,  on 
land  and  water,  in  which  the  Americans  were  generally  triumphant. 
These  little  victories  inspired  them  with  such  confidence,  that  they 
were  anxious  to  attack  the  British  troops,  and  burn  the  ships  in  the 
harbor.  But  prudence  forbade  the  rash  attempt.  The  British 
soldiers  were  likewise  impatient ;  and  the  pride  of  the  officers, 
joined  to  their  habitual  contempt  for  the  Americans,  counselled 
immediate  action  against  the  patriots.  These  counsels  prevailed ; 
and  it  was  resolved  to  take  possession  of  and  fortify  Dorchester 
heights  (now  in  South  Boston)  on  the  night  of  the  eighteenth  of 
June. 

Information  of  this  resolution  was  communicated  to  the  com 
mittee  of  safety  and  the  commanding  general,  on  the  thirteenth, 
and  this  brought  matters  to  a  crisis.  After  mature  deliberations  in 
the  committee,  and  in  a  council  of  war,  it  was  resolved  to  employ 


55G  WASHINGTON:    A   BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

countervailing  measures.  For  some  time  the  propriety  of  fortifying 
Bunker's  hill,  an  eminence  on  the  Charlestown  peninsula  which 
overlooked  the  northern  part  of  Boston,  had  been  a  subject  for 
serious  consideration.  Now  that  measure  was  resolved  upon,  and 
the  enterprise  was  intrusted  to  Colonel  William  Prescott,  of  Pep- 
perell,  who,  in  the  council  of  war,  had  strongly  advocated  the 
necessity  of  such  a  measure.  His  words  were  weighty,  for  his 
judgment  was  highly  respected.  He  was  a  veteran  of  other  wars, 
a  man  of  large  property,  a  patriot  of  undoubted  integrity,  a  soldier 
of  skill  and  courage,  and  a  citizen  distinguished  for  his  prudence, 
caution,  and  firmness. 

A  portion  of  three  regiments,  and  a  fatigue  party  of  two  hundred 
Connecticut  troops,  with  intrenching  tools,  were  detached  for  the 
labor  on  Bunker's  hill;  and  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening  of  the 
sixteenth  of  June,  these  wrere  paraded  at  Cambridge,  and  listened 
to  an  impressive  prayer  from  the  lips  of  President  Langdon,  of 
Harvard  college.  Provided  with  packs  and  blankets,  and  provisions 
for  twenty-four  hours,  the  party  left  Cambridge  at  nine  in  the 
evening,  and  proceeded  silently  and  cautiously  toward  Charlestown 
Neck,  led  by  Colonel  Prescott  and  Chief-Engineer  Gridley.  They 
had  been  joined  by  a  company  of  artillery,  and  at  the  Neck  they 
were  reinforced  by  more  troops  under  Major  Brooks,  wrho  wras 
accompanied  by  General  Putnam.  The  whole  force  now  numbered 
about  twelve  hundred  men.  Prescott  was  tall  and  commanding  in 
figure,  wore  a  three-cornered  hat  and  a  top-wig,  a  blue  coat,  faced 
and  lapped  up  at  the  skirts,  and  was  altogether  the  most  military- 
looking  man  at  Cambridge.  His  bearing  had  a  great  effect  upon 
the  militia,  and  they  cheerfully  followed  wherever  he  led,  because 
they  had  confidence  in  his  experience,  judgment,  and  bravery. 

The  stars  beamed  brightly  from  a  cloudless  sky,  and  the  night 
air  was  almost  sultry  when  the  expedition  moved  along  Charles- 
town  Neck,  and  marched  over  Bunker's  hill.  Nearer  Boston,  and 
far  more  eligible  as  commanding  the  city,  was  another  eminence 
called  Breed's  hill.  The  written  order  to  fortify  Bunker's  hill  was 
explicit,  but  Prescott,  after  consultation,  assumed  the  responsibility 


JET.  43.]  BREED'S  HILL  FORTIFIED.  557 

of  fortifying  the  latter  instead,  and  to  its  summit  the  whole  party 
marched.  There,  by  the  pale  light  of  the  stars,  Colonel  Gridley 
marked  out  the  lines  of  a  redoubt  and  intrenchments ;  and  at 
almost  midnight,  the  fatigue  party  exchanged  their  muskets  for 
picks  and  spades,  and  commenced  vigorously  the  labor  of  casting 
up  breastworks.  Everything  was  done  as  silently  as  the  nature  of 
the  business  would  allow,  for  the  British  shipping  lay  very  near. 

"  No  shout  disturbed  the  night, 
Before  that  fearful  fight ! 

There  was  no  boasting  high  — 
No  marshalling  of  men, 
Who  ne'er  might  meet  again  — 

No  cup  was  filled  and  quaffed  to  victory ! 
No  plumes  were  there, 
No  banners  fair, 

No  trumpets  breathed  around  ; 

Nor  the  drum's  startling  sound 
Broke  on  the  midnight  air/' — JOHN  NEAL. 

The  hourly  cry  of  "  All 's  well !"  came  up  from  the  British  senti 
nels  on  the  waters,  and  from  the  more  distant  city,  and  gave  evi 
dence  to  the  workers  that  they  were  undiscovered.  So  they 
labored  on  with  almost  superhuman  energy,  until  the  gray  dawn 
of  the  morning  of  the  seventeenth,  when  a  strong  redoubt  loomed 
up  on  that  green  hill,  before  the  wondering  eyes  of  the  bewildered 
Britons.  The  great  object  of  Prescott's  solicitude  was  accomplished. 
A  safe  screen  for  his  workers  had  been  cast  up,  and  at  the  hour  of 
dawn,  when  he  expected  cannon-balls  from  his  enemy,  his  intrench 
ments  were  sufficiently  high  and  strong  to  defy  them. 

The  works  on  Breed's  hill  were  first  discovered  by  the  sentinels 
on  the  sloop  of  war  Lively,  which  lay  between  Chariest  own  and 
the  shores  of  Boston.  Without  waiting  for  orders,  the  commander 
of  that  vessel  opened  a  heavy  fire  upon  the  earthworks  on  the  hill. 
This  lead  was  followed  by  the  Somerset  and  the  Falcon,  and  also  by 
one  or  two  gun-boats,  but  all  without  effect.  Unmindful  of  these 
missiles,  and  of  others  thrown  at  them  later  from  Copp's  hill  in 
Boston,  the  Americans  worked  on  within  the  intrenchments,  until 


558  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

far  toward  meridian,  when  they  were  called  to  lay  aside  the  imple 
ments  of  labor  for  the  weapons  of  war. 

This  cannonade  awakened  the  sleepers  in  Boston,  and  at  sunrise 
every  roof  and  eminence  in  the  city  was  swarming  with  people 
gazing  upon  the  strange  apparition  on  Breed's  hill,  with  feelings 
of  mingled  wonder  and  intense  anxiety.  Among  the  most  inter 
ested  of  these  spectators  was  General  Gage,  who,  at  the  first  alarm 
had  hastened  to  his  battery  on  Copp's  hill,  to  view  the  works  across 
the  stream,  that  seemed  so  like  the  creation  of  the  magician's  wand. 
While  surveying  it  with  his  glass,  with  a  brother-in-law  of  Prescott 
at  his  side,  a  tall  figure,  in  military  costume,  was  seen  leisurely 
walking  around  the  parapet  of  the  redoubt.*  "  Who  is  he  ?" 
eagerly  inquired  Gage.  Willard  recognised  his  kinsman,  and  said, 
"That  is  Colonel  Prescott."— " Will  he  fight?"  was  Gage's  quick 
demand.  "  Yes,  sir,"  replied  the  counsellor ;  "  he  is  an  old  soldier, 
and  will  fight  as  long  as  a  drop  of  blood  remains  in  his  veins." — 
"  Then,"  said  Gage,  as  he  turned  upon  his  heel  to  give  orders,  "  the 
works  must  be  carried  immediately.''-)"  The  fatal  consequences  of 
his  tardiness  were  now  keenly  felt  by  the  governor.  He  had  been 
advised,  a  month  before,  to  take  possession  of  and  fortify  these 
Charlestown  eminences ;  now  the  advantages  of  such  a  measure 
were  in  the  hands  of  the  Americans. 

Boston  was  now  the  scene  of  great  excitement.  Imminent 
danger  was  impending,  and  immediate  preparations  were  made  to 
meet  or  avert  it.  Gage  called  a  council  of  war,  and  an  immediate 
attack  upon  the  American  works  was  determined  upon.  Soon, 
drums  were  beating,  the  church  bells  were  ringing,  and  the  streets 
were  tumultuous  with  the  clatter  of  troops,  the  rumbling  of  artil 
lery  carriages,  and  the  bustle  of  soldiers  and  citizens,  the  former 
hastening  to  appointed  rendezvous,  and  the  latter  to  places  of 
safety.  Terror  and  alarm  everywhere  prevailed,  especially  among 

*  A  soldier  having  gone  outside  of  the  intrenchments,  on  Breed's  hill,  was  killed  by  a  cannon- 
ball.  This  so  alarmed  those  within  that  several  left  the  hill.  To  inspire  confidence,  Prescott 
mounted  the  parapet,  and  in  full  view  of  the  British  officers,  he  walked  around  it,  and  gave  orders  to 
the  men.  This  act  had  the  desired  effect.  It  was  during  this  exposure  that  Gage  saw  him. 

t  Frothingham's  Siege  of  Boston. 


JEr.  43.]  PREPARATIONS  FOR  BATTLE.  559 

the  tories ;  and  a  great  change  was  wrought  in  the  avowed  prin 
ciples  of  men.  Many  a  man  who  was  a  stanch  loyalist  w^hen  the 
deep  voice  of  the  cannon  awakened  him  that  morning,  hastened, 
with  blanched  lips,  to  confess  his  more  stanch  republicanism  to  the 
selectmen  of  Boston. 

As  the  sun  ascended  in  his  course  the  heat  became  intense  and 
oppressive.  Fatigue,  hunger,  and  thirst  assailed  the  Americans 
with  fearful  energy,  and  murmurs  of  discontent  were  heard.  They 
asked  to  be  relieved ;  but  Prescott,  feeling  confident  that  the  enemy 
would  not  attack  his  works,  refused  acquiescence.  Putnam,  on  the 
contrary,  who  was  continually  communicating  between  Charlestown 
Neck  and  headquarters,  was  as  confident  that  the  British  would 
attack  Prescott's  redoubt,  and  early  in  the  morning  he  had  urged 
General  Ward  to  send  reinforcements  to  Breed's  hill.  That  officer 
believed  that  Cambridge,  where  the  stores  were  deposited,  would 
be  the  first  point  of  attack,  and  was  unwilling  to  weaken  his  force 
there ;  so  he  sent  only  a  part  of  Stark's  regiment.  At  about  nine 
o'clock,  Prescott  became  convinced  of  his  error,  by  seeing  the  move 
ments  of  the  enemy  on  the  Boston  shore ;  and  by  the  advice  of  a 
council  of  war,  he  sent  Major  Brooks  (afterward  governor  of  Mas 
sachusetts)  to  Cambridge  for  reinforcements.  General  Ward  con 
sulted  the  committee  of  safety,  and  acting  under  their  advice,  he 
ordered  forward  the  remainder  of  Stark's  regiment  at  Medford,  the 
whole  of  Reid's  corps  stationed  at  the  Neck,  and  called  in  Gerrish's 
companies  at  Chelsea. 

At  noon  the  men  in  the  redoubt  ceased  work,  piled  their  in 
trenching  tools,  took  some  refreshments,  hoisted  the  New  England 
Hag,*  and  prepared  to  fight.  Pursuant  to  the  urgent  request  of 
Putnam,  the  tools  were  sent  to  Bunker's  hill,  where  intrenchments 

*  "  The  question  has  been  unsettled  respecting  the  flag  used  on  that  occasion,  as  contemporary 
writers  are  silent  on  the  subject.  An  intelligent  old  lady  (Mrs.  Manning),  whom  I  saw  between  the 
Brandywine  and  Kennet  square,  in  Pennsylvania,  informed  me  that  her  father,  who  was  in  the  bat 
tle,  assisted  in  hoisting  the  standard,  and  she  had  heard  him  speak  of  it  as  "a  noble  flag."  The 
ground  was  blue,  and  one  corner  was  quartered  by  the  red  cross  of  St.  George,  in  one  section  of 
which  was  the  figure  of  a  pine-tree.  This  was  the  New  England  flag,  as  given  in  the  sketch. 
Doubtless  there  were  many  other  flags  belonging  to  the  several  regiments." — Lossing's  Pictorial 
Field-Book  of  the  Revolution,  i.,  541. 


5GO  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

were  immediately  commenced,  under  the  direction  of  that  officer ; 
but  most  of  the  men  employed  in  removing  the  tools,  took  counsel 
of  their  fears,  and,  as  Prescott  had  predicted,  never  returned  to  the 
redoubt. 

The  British  had  made  ample  preparations  for  battle,  and  between 
twelve  and  one  o'clock,  four  battalions  of  infantry,  two  companies 
of  grenadiers,  and  two  of  light  infantry,  with  several  field-pieces, 
were  embarked  in  twenty-eight  barges.  They  crossed  the  channel 
where  the  waters  of  the  Charles  and  Mystic  rivers  mingle,  and 
landed  at  Moulton's  Point,  under  cover  of  a  brisk  cannonade  from 
the  British  ships  and  gunboats.  That  movement  presented  a  bril 
liant  scene.  The  scarlet  uniforms  of  the  British,  their  burnished 
arms,  their  perfect  discipline,  their  automatic  motions,  and  their  full 
band  of  music,  would  have  excited  the  greatest  enthusiasm  and 
joyousness  on  any  less  painful  occasion.  Now  the  pageantry  was  a 
dreadful  mockery  —  a  glorious  mask  over  the  horrid  visage  of  the 
demon  of  war,  as  it  went  forth  upon  its  bloody  and  unnatural 
errand. 

These  troops,  many  of  them  veterans  in  continental  wars,  were 
under  the  command  of  General  William  Howe,  assisted  by  Brigadier- 
General  Pigot  and  other  accomplished  officers,  who  were  instructed 
to  "  drive  the  rebel's  from  the  hill."  They  were  formed  into  three 
lines  on  landing,  when  Howe,  perceiving  the  real  strength  of  the 
American  works,  thought  it  prudent  to  send  to  General  Gage  for 
reinforcements.  While  waiting  for  them  the  British  troops  stacked 
their  arms  and  dined  without  molestation. 

Cambridge  had  now  become  a  scene  of  great  confusion,  and 
Charlestown,  at  the  foot  of  Breed's  hill,  was  almost  deserted. 
When  intelligence  of  the  landing  of  the  British  reached  Cam 
bridge,  the  drums  beat  to  arms,  and  the  church  bells  rang  out  an 
alarum.  Soldiers  and  citizens  were  immediately  in  motion,  and 
military  officers  hurried  to  and  fro  with  marching  orders  for  the 
troops.  General  Ward  retained  his  own  regiment  and  others,  for 
the  defence  of  the  stores  at  Cambridge,  and  the  remainder  of  the 
Massachusetts  and  Connecticut  regiments  were  ordered  to  Charles- 


M-r.  43.]  THE  HEROES  IN  THE  REDOUBT.  561 

town.     The  latter  were  led  by  General  Putnam,  in  person,  and  took 
post  on  the  summit  and  slopes  of  Bunker's  hill. 

At  two  o'clock  reinforcements  for  Howe  landed  upon  the  site  of 
the  Charlestown  navy-yard,  and  the  whole  invading  force  then 
amounted  to  about  four  thousand  men.  The  hour  just  ended  had 
been  one  of  great  anxiety  to  the  jaded  and  half-famished  soldiers 
within  the  redoubt.  They  had  observed  the  whole  martial  display 
of  the  enemy,  from  the  time  of  the  first  embarkation  until  the 
forming  of  the  veterans  for  battle.  They  knew  their  own  weakness 
in  numbers,  arms,  ammunition,  and  discipline,  and  fully  perceived 
the  superior  strength  of  the  foe,  with  his  overwhelming  numbers, 
complete  equipments,  and  heavy  artillery.  The  contrast  wras  neces 
sarily  appalling  to  undisciplined  yeomanry,  who,  as  "  rebels,"  were 
virtually  resisting  writh  the  halter  of  treason-punishment  about 
their  necks.  They  were  physically  weakened  by  long  fasting  and 
severe  labor;  parched  by  fever  engendered  by  fatigue  without 
adequate  means  for  allaying  thirst ;  and,  as  yet,  encouraged  by 
very  few  promises  of  succor  from  without,  for  reinforcements  came 
in  tardy  dribbles.  In  this  condition  the  dreadful  idea  that  treach 
ery  had  placed  them  there  to  be  sacrified,  took  possession  of  their 
minds  writh  almost  the  power  of  a  panic-demon ;  yet  they  could  not 
doubt  the  patriotism  of  their  chief  officers.  These  suspicions  were 
very  soon  dispelled  by  the  arrival  of  Doctor  Warren  and  General 
Pomeroy,  from  Cambridge.  The  enthusiasm  of  these  men  had 
silenced  the  voice  of  prudence,  when  they  heard  of  the  landing  of 
the  British.  Warren  was  then  at  Watertown,  seven  miles  distant, 
presiding  over  the  provincial  Congress  in  session  there.  He  has 
tened  to  Cambridge  on  a  fleet  horse,  resolved  to  earn  by  action  a 
title  to  the  commission  of  a  major-general,  which  had  been  con 
ferred  upon  him  four  days  before,  but  not  yet  presented  in  form. 
Putnam  tried  to  dissuade  him  from  going  into  the  battle,  but  War 
ren  would  not  listen  with  obedience,  and  he  pushed  forward  through 
the  menacing  perils  of  Charlestown  Neck,  and  entered  the  redoubt, 
amid  the  loud  huzzas  of  the  provincials,  at  the  moment  when  Howe 
gave  orders  for  his  troops  to  advance.  Prescott  immediately  offered 

36 


562  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  chief  command  to  Warren  as  his  superior  in  rank,  when  the 
latter  quickly  replied,  "  I  have  come  to  fight  as  a  volunteer,  and 
feel  honored  in  being  allowed  to  serve  under  so  brave  an  officer." 
Pomeroy  came  on  foot  soon  afterward,  writh  a  borrowed  musket,  to 
fight  as  a  volunteer  in  another  part  of  the  field.  He  had  ridden  a 
horse  belonging  to  General  Ward  as  far  as  the  Neck.  When  he 
perceived  the  danger  to  which  the  animal  would  be  exposed  from 
the  enfilading  fire  of  British  cannon  on  the  waters,  he  left  him  in 
charge  of  a  sentinel,  and  walked  leisurely  over  in  the  face  of  the 
peril.  The  presence  of  these  men  greatly  inspirited  the  wavering 
soldiers,  assured  their  confidence,  and  gave  strength  to  their  fee 
bleness. 

While  the  British  were  preparing  for  action,  and  it  became  evi 
dent  that  they  wrould  endeavor  to  gain  the  flank  and  rear  of  the 
Americans  by  marching  along  the  Mystic  river,  the  latter  were 
vigilant  and  active  in  preparations  to  defeat  them.  The  chivalric 
Captain  Knowlton,  who  became  one  of  the  early  martyrs  of  the 
Revolution,  was  detached  by  Prescott  with  Connecticut  troops  and 
Captain  Gridley's*  artillery  company  of  fifty  men  with  two  field- 
pieces,  to  prepare  a  barrier  in  that  direction,  with  orders  to  defend 
it.  He  took  post  six  hundred  feet  in  the  rear  of  the  redoubt, 
toward  Bunker's  hill,  and  commenced  a  novel  breastwork,  seven 
hundred  feet  in  length,  extending  down  the  green  slope  to  the 
Mystic  river.  On  that  line  was  a  post-and-rail  fence,  set  in  a  low 
foot-wrall  of  stone.  A  few  feet  in  front  of  this  Knowlton  con 
structed  a  similar  rail-fence,  and  filled  the  intervening  space  with 
new-mown  hay  which  lay  upon  the  meadows  near.  This  breast 
work,  so  feeble  in  material,  answered  an  excellent  purpose. 

While  this  labor  was  in  progress  Colonel  Stark  arrived,  with  his 
regiment,  at  the  Neck,  which  was  then  swept  by  an  enfilading  fire 
from  the  guns  of  the  enemy.  He  had  marched  slowly  from  Med- 
ford  so  as  not  to  weary  his  men ;  and  when  a  subaltern  suggested 
the  propriety  of  a  quicker  movement  across  the  exposed  Neck, 

*  Captain  Samuel  Gridley  was  a  son  of  Colonel  Richard  Gridley,  the  chief-engineer.  He  was 
quite  inefficient,  and  had  received  his  appointment  solely  in  compliment  to  his  father. 


«T.  43.]  ADVANCE  OF  THE  BRITISH  TROOPS.  563 

the  veteran  coolly  replied,  "  One  fresh  man  in  action  is  worth  ten 
fatigued  ones,"  and  marched  steadily  on  unmindful  of  the  open 
danger.  He  took  position  at  the  rail-fence  breastwork,  where  he 
was  soon  joined  by  Colonel  Reid's  regiment.  Between  that  breast 
work  and  the  intrenchment  on  the  left  of  the  redoubt,  the  artillery 
companies  of  Gridley  and  Callender  were  stationed ;  and  a  com 
pany  of  militia  took  post  on  the  right  of  the  redoubt,  nearer 
Charlestown. 

It  was  now  almost  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  both  parties 
were  prepared  for  action.  General  Howe  briefly  addressed  his 
soldiers,  telling  them  that  the  "enemy"  must  be  driven  from 
Breed's  hill,  or  they  would  set  Boston  on  fire ;  expressing  a  belief 
that  his  troops  would  act  like  true  English  soldiers,  and  adding,  "  I 
shall  not  desire  one  of  you  to  go  a  step  further  than  where  I  go 
myself  at  your  head."  He  then  ordered  out  strong  flank  guards  as 
he  moved  slowly  forward  to  the  attack,  and  directed  his  artillery  to 
play  upon  the  American  breastworks  on  the  hill,  and  at  the  rail- 
fence.  At  this  time  he  displayed  a  blue  flag  as  a  signal,  and  the 
heavy  guns  upon  Copp's  hill  and  on  the  ships  and  floating-batteries 
in  the  harbor,  at  once  poured  a  terrible  storm  of  round-shot  upon 
the  redoubt.  At  the  same  time  a  heavy  cannonade  was  opened 
upon  the  right  wing  of  the  Americans,  under  General  Thomas,  at 
Roxbury,  to  prevent  his  sending  reinforcements  to  Charlestown. 

The  British  officers  expected  an  easy  victory.  The  plan  of 
attack  was  for  General  Pigot  to  inarch  up  Breed's  hill  with  the  left 
wing,  and  force  the  redoubt,  while  General  Howe,  with  the  right 
wing,  should  press  forward  along  the  Mystic  river,  demolish  the 
rail-fence  intrenchments,  gain  the  rear  of  the  Americans,  and  cut  off 
their  retreat.  Accordingly,  under  cover  of  a  cannonade  from  an 
eminence  on  Moulton's  Point,  Pigot  advanced  up  the  hill,  and  his 
troops  commenced  discharging  their  muskets  before  they  were 
within  gun-shot  of  the  redoubt.  In  the  meantime  Howe  had  ad 
vanced  on  the  right,  but  had  not  proceeded  far  when  his  artillery 
ceased,  it  being  discovered  that  the  balls  sent  over  from  Boston 
were  too  large  for  the  calibre  of  his  cannon.  He  was  thus  com- 


5(54  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

pelled  to  rely  upon  small  arms  and  the  bayonet.  At  the  same  time 
the  feeble  responses  that  were  given  by  the  artillery  of  Gridley 
and  Callender,  as  suddenly  ceased ;  the  guns  of  the  former  having 
become  disabled,  while  the  latter,  alleging  that  his  cartridges  were 
too  large,  withdrew  to  Bunker's  hill,  and  positively  refused  to  obey 
Putnam,  when  that  officer  ordered  him  back  to  the  lines.  Most  of 
Calender's  men,  more  courageous  than  he,  deserted  him  and  fought 
nobly. 

The  British  troops,  burdened  with  heavy  knapsacks,  and  their 
way  obstructed  by  tall  grass  and  fences,  moved  slowly  but  steadily 
on,  while  the  Americans,  secure  from  harm  behind  their  breast 
works,  coolly  awaited  their  approach.  Very  few  of  the  provincials 
could  be  seen  by  the  advancing  Britons ;  but  within  those  intrench- 
ments,  and,  in  reserve  behind  the  hills,  there  were  fifteen  hundred 
determined  men.  ready,  at  a  prescribed  signal,  to  fall  upon  the  foe. 

The  Americans  in  the  redoubt  had  but  a  scanty  supply  of  pow 
der,  and  to  avoid  wasting  it  by  ineffectual  shots,  Prescott  ordered 
his  men  not  to  fire  until  the  enemy  should  approach  within  a  cer 
tain  distance,  and  then  not  without  the  word  of  command.  As 
Pigot  advanced  it  was  difficult  to  restrain  the  provincials,  and  a  few 
random  shots  were  fired.  At  length,  when  the  British  were  within 
a  few  rods  of  the  redoubt,  Prescott  waved  his  sword  over  his  head 
and  shouted,  "Fire  /"  A  terrible  volley  followed  the  word,  and  the 
carnage  in  the  British  ranks  was  dreadful,  for  almost  every  Ameri 
can  in  the  redoubt  was  a  practised  marksman,  and  had  taken  sure 
aim.  Whole  platoons  were  laid  upon  the  earth,  like  grass  by  the 
mower's  scythe.  Many  officers,  at  whom  special  aim  had  been 
taken,  were  slain  or  wounded  by  that  first  fire.  Other  deadly 
volleys  succeeded,  and  the  enemy,  disconcerted,  broke  and  fled 
toward  the  water. 

Howe,  meanwhile,  had  approached  the  rail-fence  intrenchments. 
He  had  used  grape-shot  in  his  cannon,  but  was  soon  compelled  to 
abandon  his  pieces  because  of  marshy  ground,  over  which  they 
could  not  be  wheeled ;  and  he  pressed  forward  to  the  attack  with 
small  arms.  There,  too,  the  Americans  reserved  their  fire  until  the 


Mr.  43.]  BATTLE  ON  BREED'S  HILL.  565 

British  were  near,  when  they  opened  upon  them,  first  with  Callen- 
der's  field-pieces,  directed  by  General  Putnam,  and  then  with  mus 
ketry.  As  upon  the  slopes  of  Breed's  hill  toward  Charlestown,  the 
British  here  suffered  terribly  from  the  American  marksmen,  and 
valuable  officers  were  slain  or  disabled.  The  troops  broke  and  fled 
in  confusion,  and  many  Americans  eagerly  leaped  the  rail-fence  to 
pursue  them,  but  were  prevented  by  their  prudent  officers. 

There  was  great  joy  on  the  heights  when  the  British  veterans 
recoiled,  and  the  inspirited  Americans  felt  certain  of  final  victory, 
Prescott  praised  his  men  for  their  coolness  and  skill,  and  uttered 
many  words  of  encouragement,  while  Putnam,  full  of  the  fire  of  an 
old  war-horse  when  inhaling  the  smoke  of  powder,  rode  from  point 
to  point  over  the  peninsula,  from  the  redoubt  to  the  Neck,  watch 
ing  the  course  of  events,  urging  on  the  scattered  reinforcements, 
and  directing  the  troops  at  the  intrenchmente  and  elsewhere.  The 
perils  of  the  Neck  deterred  many  from  crossing,  and  when  the  Brit 
ish  were  ready  for  a  second  attack,  very  few  men  had  been  added 
to  the  number  in  the  redoubt  and  the  defences  on  the  Mystic  slope. 

General  Howe  soon  rallied  his  troops,  and  led  them  to  a  second 
attack  in  the  same  order  as  before.  They  had  been  reinforced  by 
four  hundred  marines  from  Boston,  and  those  who  composed  the 
advance  of  the  column  were  chiefly  fresh  troops.  Slowly  they 
marched  over  the  bodies  of  their  slain  companions,  under  cover  of 
a  heavy  cannonade,  and  continued  to  fire  as  they  advanced,  while 
the  Americans,  as  before,  kept  silence.  At  this  moment  a  new 
scene  in  the  terrible  drama  was  opened  —  a  scene  that  was  in  the 
programme  of  General  Gage.  Charlestown,  at  the  foot  of  Breed's 
hill,  was  suddenly  enveloped  in  flames,  fired  by  a  carcass  thrown 
from  Copp^s  hill,*  in  Boston,  and  the  torches  of  marines  sent  from 
a  British  ship-of-war.  The  houses  were  chiefly  of  wood,  and  in  the 
kpse  of  a  few  minutes,  full  two  hundred  buildings  were  blazing, 

*  A  carcass  is  a  hollow  case  formed  of  ribs  of  iron,  covered  with  cloth,  or  sometimes  iron,  with 
holes  in  it.  Being  filled  with  combustible  materials,  it  is  thrown  from  a  mortar  like  a  bombshell, 
into  a  besieged  place,  by  which  means  buildings  are  set  on  fire.  Gage  had  resolved,  some 
time  before,  to  burn  Charlestown  in  the  event  of  the  Americans  taking  possession  of  the  hills 
near  it. 


i 


5fJB  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

and  sending  up  a  cloud  of  dense  smoke  which  completely  shrouded 
the  heights  in  the  rear  whereon  the  Americans  were  posted.  Be 
neath  this  veil  the  British  hoped  to  rush,  unobserved,  up  to  the 
breastworks,  scale  them,  and  drive  out  the  provincials  at  the  point 
of  the  bayonet.  But  a  gentle  breeze,  which  appeared  to  the  Amer 
icans  like  the  breath  of  a  guardian  angel  —  the  first  motion  of  air 
that  had  been  felt  on  that  sultry  day — came  from  the  west,  swept 
the  smoke  away  seaward,  and  exposed  to  full  view  the  advancing 
columns  of  the  enemy,  almost  within  the  prescribed  distance  when 
the  Americans  were  to  open  upon  them.  When  that  was  reached, 
a  terrible  storm  of  bullets  was  hailed  upon  the  assailants  from  the 
redoubt,  and  wrhole  ranks  of  officers  and  men  were  cut  down. 
Howe  was  at  the  head  of  this  division,  encouraging  his  men ;  and  at 
one  time,  he  was  entirely  alone,  his  aids  and  all  about  him  having 
perished.  The  British  line  wavered,  then  gave  way  in  several 
places,  and,  at  last,  the  troops  recoiled,  broke,  and  retreated  in 
great  disorder  to  the  shore. 

All  this  while  thousands  of  eager  eyes  in  Boston  were  watching 
the  combatants,  and  thousands  of  anxious  hearts  there  were  beating 
heavily  with  mingled  emotions  of  hope  and  fear,  for  almost  every 
family  had  a  representative  in  one  of  the  two  armies.  Fathers, 
husbands,  sons,  and  brothers,  were  in  the  affray ;  and  deep  was  the 
mental  anguish  of  the  women  of  the  city,  who,  from  roofs  and 
steeples,  and  every  elevation,  gazed  with  straining  eyes  upon  the 
carnage,  for  the  battle  raged  in  full  view  of  thousands  of  interested 
spectators  in  the  town  and  upon  the  adjoining  hills.  "  In  other 
battles,"  said  an  eminent  statesmen,  "  the  recollection  of  wrives  and 
children  has  been  used  as  an  excitement  to  animate  the  warrior's 
breast  and  to  nerve  his  arm.  Here  was  not  a  mere  recollection, 
but  an  actual  presence  of  them,  and  other  dear  connections,  hanging 
on  the  skirts  of  the  battle,  anxious  and  agitated,  feeling  almost  as 
if  wounded  themselves  by  every  blow  of  the  enemy,  and  putting 
forth,  as  it  were,  their  own  strength,  and  all  the  energy  of  their 
throbbing  bosoms,  into  every  gallant  effort  of  their  warring  friends."* 

*  Daniel  Webster,  in  the  North  American  Review,  October,  1818. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  FINAL  STRUGGLE.         567 

General  Sir  Henry  Clinton  had  watched  the  progress  of  the 
battle,  from  Copp's  hill,  with  deep  anxiety ;  and  when,  with  mor 
tified  pride,  he  saw  the  second  repulse,  and  the  slope  of  Breed's 
hill  red  with  the  uniforms  of  the  slain  soldiers,  he  crossed  over  in 
a  boat,  followed  by  a  small  reinforcement,  and  joined  the  shattered 
army  as  a  volunteer,  while  Howe  was  endeavoring  to  rally  his 
men  for  a  third  attack.  Some  of  the  British  officers  remonstrated 
against  leading  the  men  a  third  time  to  certain  destruction.  But 
the  incautious  loudness  of  speech  of  a  provincial  in  the  redoubt, 
had  revealed  to  Howe  the  important  information,  that  the  ammuni 
tion  of  the  Americans  was  almost  exhausted,  and  this  not  only 
gave  him  the  strongest  encouragement,  but  caused  him  to  change 
his  mode  of  assault.  He  had  perceived  the  weakness  of  the  point 
between  the  breastwork  on  the  left  of  the  redoubt  and  the  rail- 
fence,  and  he  resolved  to  assail  that  point  with  his  artillery,  and 
make  a  furious  charge  upon  the  American  works  with  the  bayonet. 

It  was  indeed  true,  that  the  ammunition  in  the  redoubt  was 
almost  exhausted,  and  being  compelled  to  rely  chiefly  upon  powder 
and  ball  for  defence,  as  comparatively  few  of  their  muskets  were 
furnished  with  bayonets,  the  Americans  began  to  despair  when  they 
perceived  the  enemy  preparing  for  another  attack.  Prescott  spoke 
words  of  encouragement,  distributed  the  few  remaining  cartridges 
with  discretion,  and  directed  those  soldiers  who  were  destitute  of 
bayonets,  to  club  their  arms  and  use  the  breeches  of  their  guns  in 
repelling  the  assailants,  when  their  powder  should  be  gone.  The 
loose  stones  in  the  redoubt  were  also  collected  into  heaps,  to  be 
used  as  defensive  missiles  should  occasion  require.  All  resolved  to 
fight  as  long  as  a  ray  of  hope  should  remain. 

While  all  was  firmness  and  order  at  the  redoubt,  confusion  was 
prevailing  elsewhere.  General  Ward,  at  Cambridge,  had  not  a 
sufficiency  of  staff  officers  to  convey  his  orders,  which  were  issued 
on  the  reports  of  Captain  (afterward  General)  Henry  Knox,  of  the 
artillery,  who  performed  reconnoitring  service  all  that  day,  as  a 
volunteer.  Late  in  the  afternoon,  he  despatched  his  own  regiment 
and  other  troops  to  the  field  of  action,  but  the  perils  of  the  Neck, 


5CrJ  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

swept  by  the  British  cannon,  awed  the  raw  recruits,  and  they  held 
back.  Colonel  Gardner  succeeded  in  leading  three  hundred  men 
over  to  Bunker's  hill,  and  these  were  immediately  ordered  to  the 
lines  by  Putnam.  On  their  march  Gardner  was  mortally  wounded 
by  a  musket-ball,  when  his  men,  thrown  into  confusion,  fell  back, 
and  very  few  of  them  engaged  in  the  contest.  Other  regiments 
failed  to  reach  the  lines ;  but  a  corps  under  the  gallant  Febiger,  a 
Danish  officer,  greatly  annoyed  the  left  wing  of  the  British.  Put 
nam,  meanwhile,  was  urging  on  reinforcements,  but  with  little 
effect.  Men  were  continually  leaving  the  lines  with  a  variety  of 
excuses,  and  they  were  scattered  all  over  the  vicinity  of  Bunker's 
hill,  in  utter  confusion. 

Howe  was  exasperated  at  the  repulse  of  his  troops.  He  felt 
that  his  own  reputation  and  the  honor  of  the  British  army  were  at 
stake ;  and  he  could  not  brook  the  thought  that  undisciplined 
yeomen,  feeble  in  numbers,  should  raise  a  shout  of  victory  over  his 
discomfiture.  Like  Cortez,  he  voluntarily  cut  off  his  own  retreat. 
He  sent  his  boats  to  the  Boston  shore,  and  the  alternative  for  his 
men  was  to  fight,  conquer,  or  die. 

Slowly  and  steadily  the  British  moved  to  the  third  attack.  From 
the  flank  their  cannon  completely  swept  the  interior  of  the  breast 
works,  destroying  many  of  the  provincials,  and  driving  the  remain 
der  within  the  redoubt.  Reserving  their  fire  until  a  proper  mo 
ment,  the  Americans  again  poured  a  deadly  volley  upon  the 
advancing  enemy.  Three  valuable  officers  and  many  privates 
fell.  General  Howe  was  wounded  in  the  foot,  but  he  continued 
fighting  gallantly  at  the  head  of  his  men,  cheering  them  on  by 
word  and  acts.  Each  moment  the  fire  from  the  redoubt  grew 
fainter,  and  at  last  it  ceased,  for  almost  every  cartridge  was  spent. 

Eagerly  the  British  now  pressed  forward,  reserving  their  fire 
until  nothing  but  a  thin  ridge  of  earth  separated  the  combatants. 
This  was  soon  scaled,  when  the  assailants,  who  were  led  by  a  brave 
subaltern  shouting,  "  Come  on,  boys !  the  day  is  ours !"  were  re 
pulsed  by  a  shower  of  stones  hurled  by  stalwart  hands,  and  by  a 
few  musketrshots  which  had  been  held  in  reserve  for  the  occasion. 


N:    A  BIOGRAPHY. 

,  awed  .the  raw  recruits,  and  they  held 
'ivrrtner  succeeded  in  leading  three  hundred  men 
lei's  hill,  and  these  were  immediately  ordered  to  the 
hitmtm.     On  their  march  Gardner  was  mortally  wounded 
i>y  a  mu>ket-ball,  when  his  men,  thrown  into  confusion,  fell  back, 
a  ad  very  few  of  them  engaged  in  the  contest.     Other  regiments 
failed  to  reach  the  lines;  but  a  corps  under  the  gallant  Febiger,  a 
•••nisli  officer,  greatly  annoyed  the  left  wing  of  the  British.     Put 
nam.  .  w?w    nr^in<r   on    reinforcements,  but  with   little 


•it  his  own  reputation  arid  tin-  honor  of  the  British  armv  were  at 
-:ake;  and  he  could  not  brook  the  thought  that  undisciplined 
;•  eouieu,  feeble  ;u  numbers,  should  n>.i»c  a  4iout  of  victory  over  his 
di scomtiturr.  Cortez,  ho  yolui>  tartly  cut  nfl"  his  own  retreat. 

Uo  eeni  us.-   h'uifc  u»  vhe  Boston  .shore,  and  thvj  aiu  rnative  for  his 
!iien  was  to  light,  conquer,  .or  die. 

steadily  the  British  moved  to  the  third  attack.     From 

vhe  Hank  tUeir  cannon  completely  swept  .the  interior  of  the  breast- 

;rks,  destroying  many  of  the  provincials,  and  driving  the  remain- 

r  within  the  redoubt.     Reserving  their  fire  until  a  proper  mo- 

jnt.   the    Americans  ..again   poured   a   deadly   volley    upon   the 

•  ivancing    enemy.      Three    valuable    officers   and   many   privates 

J'-il-    General  Howe  was  -wounded  in  the  foot,  but  he  continued 

lighting  .gallantly  at  the  head 'of  his  men,  cheering  them  on  by 

v  >rd   and  acts.      Each   moment  the   fire  from  the  redoubt  grew 

:« niter,  and  at  last  it  ceased,  for  almost  every  cartridge  was  sport 

Eagerly  the   British  now  pressed  forward,  reserving    t^*'   tire 

antil  nothing  but  a  thin  ridge  of  earth  separuMi  jwtnnts. 

lliis  -was  soon  scaled,  when  the  assailants,  w&<<         -  i**t!  -by  a  brave 

haltern  shoutiu  -ie  on.  boys !    tlj*>  -av   \*  om> !'    were  rt> 

by  a  show-  p?,?*,! v^nn    lj  i?-iis,  and  by  a 

t-«hotft  \\  i]   m  re<   rve  N>r  ;    •   occasion 


Mf.  43.]  CHARACTER  OF  WARREN.  571 

The  Americans  sustained  a  loss  in  the  death  of  Warren  for  which 
no  advantage  gained  could  compensate.  Many  gallant,  many  noble 
men  perished  on  that  day ;  but  no  one  was  so  widely  and  deeply 
lamented,  because  no  one  was  so  widely  and  truly  loved  as  that 
self-sacrificing  man.  He  was  the  impersonation  of  the  spirit  of 
generous  and  disinterested  patriotism  that  inspired  the  colonies. 
In  every  relation  in  life  he  was  a  model  of  excellence.  "Not  all 
the  havoc  and  devastation  they  have  made  has  wounded  me  like 
the  death  of  Warren,"  wrote  the  wife  of  John  Adams,  three  weeks 
afterward.  "  We  want  him  in  the  senate ;  we  want  him  in  his 
profession ;  we  want  him  in  the  field.  We  mourn  for  the  citizen, 
the  senator,  the  physician,  and  the  warrior." — "  He  fell,"  as  Everett 
has  beautifully  expressed  it,  "  with  a  numerous  band  of  kindred 
spirits — the  gray-haired  veteran,  the  stripling  in  the  flower  of 
youth  —  who  had  stood  side  by  side  on  that  dreadful  day,  and  fell 
together,  like  the  beauty  of  Israel  in  their  high  places." 

Warren  was  distinguished,  from  his  youth,  for  intense  love  of 
country  and  boldness  of  character.  He  was  one  of  the  earliest 
members  of  the  association  in  Boston  known  as  the  Sons  of  Lib 
erty;  and  from  1768  he  was  extremely  efficient  in  fostering  the 
spirit  of  rational  freedom  and  independence  in  the  wide  circle  of 
acquaintances  in  which  he  moved.  His  mind,  suggestive  and  daring, 
planned  many  measures  in  secret  caucus  with  Samuel  Adams  and 
others,  for  resisting  the  encroachments  of  British  power.  In  1771 
he  delivered  the  usual  oration  in  Boston,  on  the  anniversary  of  the 
"  Massacre ;"  and,  in  consequence  of  threats  made  by  some  British 
officers,  that  they  would  take  the  life  of  any  man  who  should  dare 
to  speak  on  such  an  occasion,  he  solicited  the  honor  of  performing 
a  like  duty  on  the  fifth  of  March,  1775.  On  the  appointed  day 
the  old  South  meetinghouse  was  crowded,  and  the  aisles,  stairs,  and 
pulpit,  wrere  filled  with  armed  British  soldiers.  The  undaunted 
young  orator  entered  the  building  through  a  window  back  of  the 
pulpit,  which  he  reached  by  a  ladder,  and  in  the  midst  of  profound 
silence,  he  commenced  his  exordium  with  a  firm  voice.  He  dwelt 
eloquently  upon  the  early  struggles  and  later  endurances  of  the 


57'2  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

New  England  people.  Gradually  he  approached  the  theme  of  the 
fifth  of  March,  and  then  he  portrayed  the  scene  in  such  language  and 
pathos  of  expression,  that  even  the  stern  soldiers  who  came  to  awe 
his  spirit  wept  like  children  at  his  words.  He  stood  there,  in  the 
midst  of  that  multitude,  a  striking  symbol  of  the  revolt  which  he 
was  leading,  firm  in  the  faith  of  the  sentiment — "RESISTANCE  TO 

TYRANTS  IS  OBEDIENCE  TO  GOD  !" 

Warren  was  an  early  and  glorious  martyr;  and  his  grave,  dug 
upon  the  spot  where  he  fell,  was  an  appropriate  resting-place  for 
the  body  of  such  a  man.  There,  on  the  morning  after  the  battle, 
it  was  recognised  by  Jonathan  Farnum,  his  hairdresser,  and  was 
buried  by  the  foe  with  proper  honors.  Later,  when  that  foe 
was  driven  away,  his  remains  wrere  carried  into  Boston,  by  affec 
tionate  hands,  and  deposited  beneath  King's  chapel ;  and  now  they 
rest  under  the  chancel  of  St.  Paul's  church.  Nineteen  years  after 
ward,  the  freemasons,  among  whom  he  was  a  beloved  leader,  as 
grand-master  for  North  America,  erected  a  neat  monument  upon 
that  spot ;  and  just  fifty  years  to  a  day,  from  the  time  of  his  death, 
Lafayette,  then  our  nation's  guest,  laid  there  the  corner-stone  of 
that  noble  granite  obelisk  —  the  Bunker-Hill  monument — which 
commemorates  the  death  of  the  hero,  and  the  patriotism  of  his 
countrymen.  The  continental  Congress,  in  1777,  ordered  "a  monu 
ment  to  be  erected  to  the  memory  of  General  Warren,  in  the  town 
of  Boston,"  and  also  resolved,  "  that  his  eldest  son  be  educated  at 
the  expense  of  the  United  States."  That  monument  was  never 
erected,  but  the  son  of  the  hero  received  the  fostering  care  of  the 
country  for  whose  independence  the  blood  of  his  father  was  shed. 

The  memory  of  Warren  grows  dearer  to  his  countrymen  with 
the  lapse  of  years,  and  the  reverence  for  his  deeds  has  assumed  a 
form  akin  to  that  of  worship.  That  reverence  was  nobly  expressed 
on  the  seventeenth  of  June,  1857  (the  eighty-second  anniversary 
of  the  battle  of  Bunker's  hill),  when,  in  the  city  of  Boston,  a  statue 
of  the  martyr  was  inaugurated  with  appropriate  ceremonies,  in  the 
presence  of  many  thousands  of  people. 


JET.  43-1  WASHINGTON'S  MISSION. 


CHAPTEK   L, 

CHARACTER  OF  WASHINGTON'S  MISSION HIS  JOURNEY  FROM  PHILADELPHIA HIS 

COMPANIONS,  LEE  AND  SCHUYLER NEWS  OF  THE  BUNKER'S  HILL    BATTLE 

WASHINGTON'S  SATISFACTION  WITH  THE  MILITIA  —  MET  BY  A  LEGISLATIVE  COM 
MITTEE    FKOM    NEW  YORK PERPLEXITY  OF    THE    CIVIL    AUTHORITIES    THERE 

RECEPTION  OF  WASHINGTON  AND  TRYON INSTRUCTIONS  TO  GENERAL  SCHUYLER 

TRYON  AND  THE  JOHNSON  FAMILY DEPARTURE  FOR  THE  CAMP EVENTS  OF 

THE     JOURNEY WASHINGTON'S    RECEPTION  AT  CAMBRIDGE. 

IT  was  at  the  summer  solstice  when  Washington  set  out  from 
Philadelphia  upon  the  high  and  holy  mission  for  which  he  had  been 
prepared  by  the  wise  Ruler  of  the  universe,  History  affords  no 
parallel  to  the  scene  -y  and  romance  and  poetry  have  never  invented 
a  spectacle  more  sublime,  viewed  in  its  relations  to  the  best  earthly 
interests  of  mankind.  He  went  forth  at  the  command  of  a  nation's 
will,  expressed  by  the  nation's  voice,  to  model  an  army  out  of  the 
crudest  materials,  and  to  form  battalions  thereof  to  confront  the 
disciplined  warriors  of  one  of  the  most  powerful  empires  on  the 
face  of  the  round  world.  He  went  forth  to  the  command  of  that 
army,  not  to  strike  for  power,  for  territory,  for  treasure,  or  even  for 
personal  freedom,  but  for  the  disinthralment  of  his  country,  and 
the  vindication  of  the  Divine  principles  of  human  liberty.  He 
went  forth,  not  as  an  instrument  formed  by  the  force  of  immediate 
circumstances,  to  be  laid  aside  and  forgotten  when  its  special  func 
tions  had  been  performed,  but  as  another  Moses,  born,  nurtured, 
developed,  disciplined,  and  inspired,  to  lead  a  great  people  out  of 
bondage,  to  prepare  them  for  the  enjoyments  of  the  land  of  promise 
which  they  now  inhabit,  and  to  be  for  ever  a  sublime  model  of  a 
PATRIOT  for  the  contemplation  of  oncoming  generations. 

No  wonder  that  Washington's  great  soul  was   bowed  in   deep 


574  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

humility  when  the  responsibility  was  laid  upon  him  by  his  sena 
torial  compeers ;  and  that  the  warning  admonitions  of  a  sensitive 
spirit  should  have  made  him  at  first  recoil  from  the  proffered  honor, 
as  too  great  for  his  human  capacity.  But  how  soon  did  these  timid 
forebodings  give  wray  before  the  counsels  of  a  noble  courage,  born 
of  faith  in  God  and  the  sceptre  of  his  righteousness,  which  enabled 
him  to  say  to  them,  without  hesitation,  yet  not  without  emotion, 
"  As  the  Congress  desire  it,  I  will  enter  upon  the  momentous  duty, 
and  exert  every  power  I  possess  in  their  service,  and  for  the  sup 
port  of  the  glorious  cause !"  and  tenderly  to  his  dear  wife,  "  I  shall 
rely,  therefore,  confidently  on  that  Providence  which  has  heretofore 
preserved  and  been  bountiful  to  me,  not  doubting  that  I  shall 
return  safe  to  you  in  the  fall !"  It  was  this  consciousness  of  dutiful 
obedience  to  the  will  of  his  countrymen,  the  integrity  of  his  mo 
tives,  the  justice  of  the  cause,  and  reliance  upon  Jehovah,  which 
constituted  his  moral  strength,  that  sustained  him  in  all  the  trying 
scenes  of  an  eight  years'  leadership.  To  regard  Washington  as 
going  forth,  on  that  occasion,  as  only  a  captain-general  appointed  by 
erring  expediency  to  lead  a  revolutionary  army,  is  the  exercise  of 
that  practical  atheism  which  denies  the  existence  of  God  in  history. 
Washington  left  Philadelphia  on  horseback,  and  travelled  in  that 
manner  all  the  way  to  Cambridge.*  He  was  accompanied  by 
Generals  Lee  and  Schuyler ;  and  also  by  Major  Thomas  Mifflin,  as 
his  aid-de-camp,  and  Joseph  Reed,  who  became  a  member  of  his 
military  family  a  few  days  afterward,  as  his  secretary.*)*  They 
were  escorted  out  of  the  city,  as  we  have  observed,  by  a  brilliant 
civic  and  military  cavalcade  of  two  thousand  men ;  and  a  corps  of 
light-horse,  commanded  by  Captain  Markoe,  accompanied  them  all 
the  way  to  New  York. 

*  The  first  item  in  the  account  current  that  Washington  rendered  at  the  conclusion  of  the  war, 
was  as  follows  :  "  To  the  purchase  of  five  horses  (two  of  which  were  had  on  credit  from  Mr.  James 
Mease),  to  equip  me  for  my  journey  to  the  army  at  Cambridge  —  and  for  the  service  I  was  then 
going  upon  —  having  sent  my  chariot  and  horses  back  to  Virginia." 

t  Mr.  Reed  had  no  military  appointment  when  he  left  Philadelphia,  nor  did  he  receive  one  on  the 
way.  His  biographer  says  (Life  and  Correspondence  of  President  Reed,  i.,  105);  "What  Mr. 
Reed's  views  were  when  he  left  home,  arid  whether  he  contemplated  joining  the  service  at  that  time, 
I  have  no  means  of  ascertaining,  though  it  is  manifest,  from  the  unfeigned  surprise  of  his  most 
intimate  friends  and  relations,  that  such  an  intention  was  confined  to  his  own  breast." 


JE-r.  43.]  LEE  AND  SCHUYLER.  575 

The  three  principal  men  in  the  cavalcade  —  Washington,  Lee, 
and  Schuyler — had  campaigning  reminiscences  of  the  French  war 
to  talk  over,  and  as  they  rode  through  the  pleasant  country  by 
way  of  Frankford  to  the  passage  of  the  Delaware  at  Trenton,  no 
doubt  many  scenes  of  the  past  were  brought  vividly  to  the  recol 
lections  of  each  as  memory  found  utterance  in  some  narrative  of 
personal  experience.  Lee  and  Schuyler  had  been  companions-in 
arms  on  the  northern  frontier ;  and  now,  after  the  lapse  of  almost 
a  score  of  years,  during  which  many  changes  in  the  life  of  each 
had  been  wrought,  they  were  again  soldiers  together,  but  in  hos 
tility  to  the  government  for  whose  honor  they  had  once  fought  and 
suffered.  Although  they  were  companions-in-arms,  they  were  by 
no  means  companions  in  motives  and  aspirations.  Lee  was  a  soldier 
of  Fortune,  and  a  cosmopolite.  He  possessed  small  inhabitiveness, 
and  sought  only  the  gratification  of  his  ambitious  desires  for  per 
sonal  honor,  and  of  spite  against  a  government  that  he  regarded  as 
an  ingrate  because  of  its  neglect  of  his  merits.  Pride  and  resent 
ment  were  his  chief  impulses.  Schuyler,  like  Washington,  had 
much  at  stake.  He  was  a  man  of  large  fortune  and  extensive 
relationship.  He  was  an  ardent  friend  of  the  country  that  gave 
him  birth,  and  had  no  lower  aspirations  than  the  welfare  of  his 
people  and  of  mankind.  Patriotism  and  humanity  were  his  chief 
impulses.  Yet  the  three  journeyed  on  fraternally  together,  en 
gaged  heartily,  for  the  time,  in  the  same  noble  cause ;  and,  by  their 
respective  merits,  were  ready  and  able  to  justify  the  hopes  of  the 
Americans,  who  regarded  them  as  the  most  reliable  champions  of 
liberty,  in  the  field. 

It  would  be  gratifying  to  know  the  thoughts  and  words  of  these 
remarkable  men  while  on  this  journey.  No  doubt  the  great  theme 
was  the  cause  in  which  they  were  engaged,  and  the  best  means  for 
carrying  forward  and  sustaining  aloft  the  banner  of  revolt.  Their 
sagacious  minds  perceived  the  strong  mountains  of  difficulties  to  be 
overcome,  even  in  the  preliminary  operations  of  the  kindling  war. 
Loyalty,  born  often  of  sheer  timidity,  and  as  often  of  pure  selfish 
ness,  was  rife  in  every  neighborhood ;  and  the  just  suspicions  that 


57G  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

secret  opposers  of  the  revolt  were  in  the  very  households  of  patriots, 
brought  frequent  shadows  over  the  countenances  of  the  most  hope 
ful  men.  And  yet,  on  their  journey,  this  triad  saw  nothing  but 
the  sunshine  of  friendly  feeling,  for  the  faces  and  the  voices  of  the 
people  everywhere  expressed  delight.  As  the  sounds  of  martial 
music  heralded  the  cavalcade,  men,  women,  and  children,  came 
from  houses,  fields,  and  workshops,  and  in  groups,  by  the  waysides, 
and  gazed  in  wonder  and  pleasure  upon  the  martial  display ;  and 
citizens  of  every  degree  vied  with  each  other  in  manifestations  of 
the  most  profound  respect  for  the  commander-in-chief  and  his 
companions. 

Before  reaching  Trenton  the  travellers  were  met  by  a  courier, 
riding  in  hot  haste  for  Philadelphia,  to  lay  before  Congress  de 
spatches  concerning  the  battle  of  Bunker's  hill.  This  was  the  first 
intimation  of  that  occurrence  which  had  reached  Pennsylvania,  and 
by  a  few  eager  questions,  Washington  learned  some  gratifying 
particulars.  His  most  anxious  inquiry  was,  "  How  did  the  militia 
behave  ?"  When  informed,  by  few  words,  of  the  noble  fortitude, 
willing  obedience,  and  unwavering  courage  of  most  of  the  men  in  the 
redoubt  and  intrenchments,  gladness  lightened  his  countenance,  and 
he  dismissed  the  courier  with  the  exclamation,  "  Then  the  liberties 
of  the  country  are  safe !"  His  mind  was  relieved  of  a  great  bur 
den,  for  the  militia  of  New  England  were  to  be  his  chief  reliance 
for  awhile. 

On  their  arrival  at  New  Brunswick,  on  the  twenty-fourth,  Gen 
eral  Schuyler  despatched  a  messenger  to  the  New  York  provincial 
Congress,  with  information  that  the  commander-in-chief  and  his 
retinue  would  be  at  Newark  the  following  morning,  and  a  request 
that  they  should  send  a  delegation  to  meet  him  there,  and  advise 
the  most  proper  place  to  cross  the  Hudson  river.  A  committee, 
consisting  of  four  members  of  the  Congress  (one  of  whon  was 
General  Richard  Montgomery),  accordingly  met  Washington  and 
his  party  at  the  appointed  place.  They  all  crossed  the  Hudson 
from  Paulus's  Hook  (now  Jersey  City),  and  arrived  in  New  York 
on  the  afternoon  of  Sunday,  the  twenty-fifth.  Much  excitement 


JET.  43.]  AN  OFFICIAL  DILEMMA.  577 

then  prevailed  in  the  city.  The  provincial  Congress  and  the  muni 
cipal  authorities  had  been  placed  in  a  very  perplexing  situation,  by 
intelligence  that  Governor  Try  on,  just  arrived  from  England,  was 
in  the  harbor,  and  would  land  on  the  same  day.  The  Congress  had 
already,  under  the  pressure  of  external  influences,  cast  off  alle 
giance  to  the  royal  government,  but  they  still  professed  loyalty  to 
the  person  of  the  governor ;  and  the  mayor  and  several  other  city 
officials  were  the  personal  and  political  friends  of  Tryon. 

Here  was  a  dilemma.  A  royal  governor  and  republican  generals 
were  candidates  for  the  public  courtesy.  Circumstances  were 
hourly  developing  popular  strength,  while  the  royal  representative 
and  a  British  ship-of-war  were  in  port.  Only  two  days  before,  a 
small  party  of  the  Sons  of  Liberty,  led  by  Marinus  Willet,  had 
confronted  an  Irish  battalion,  under  Major  Moncrief,  as  it  evacuated 
Fort  George,  and  was  marching,  with  some  boxes  of  arms  in  wag 
ons,  to  embark  for  Boston.  The  patriots  seized  the  arms,  conveyed 
them  back  to  Fort  George,  and  took  possession  of  that  deserted 
post.  On  the  same  day  intelligence  had  come  from  Bunker's  hill; 
and  now  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  American  armies  ap 
proached,  with  a  retinue  of  civilians  and  soldiers.  These  events 
pressed  heavily  upon  the  spirits  of  the  loyalists  and  timid  republi 
cans  ;  and  all  in  authority  were  at  their  writs'  end.  The  cord  of 
difficulty  wras  finally  cut  in  a  simple  way.  A  militia  colonel  was 
ordered  to  parade  his  regiment,  and  be  prepared  to  receive  "  either 
the  generals  or  Governor  Tryon,  whichever  should  arrive  first,  and 
wait  on  both  as  well  as  circumstances  would  allow." 

Happily  for  all  parties,  the  advent  of  these  public  characters 
was  not  simultaneous.  Washington  arrived  several  hours  before 
the  landing  of  Tryon,  and  the  civic  and  military  honors  of  the  city 
were  earliest  bestowed  upon  him,  first  by  the  militar}',  and  then  by 
a  congratulatory  address  from  the  lips  of  Peter  Van  Brugh  Living 
ston,  the  president  of  the  provincial  Congress.  That  address  was 
cautious  and  conservative,  especially  when  the  speaker  left  the 
pleasant  bounds  of  congratulatory  sentiment,  and  dwelt  upon  the 
theme  of  passing  events.  "  Confiding  in  you,  sir,"  he  said,  "  and  in 

37 


578  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  worthy  generals  immediately  under  your  command,  we  have 
the  most  flattering  hopes  of  success  in  the  glorious  struggle  for 
American  liberty,  and  the  fullest  assurances  that  whenever  this 
important  contest  shall  be  decided  by  that  fondest  wish  of  each 
American  soul  —  an  accommodation  with  our  mother-country — you 
will  cheerfully  resign  the  important  deposite  committed  into  your 
hands,  and  reassume  the  character  of  our  worthiest  citizen." 

Washington  made  a  brief  reply  in  behalf  of  himself  and  associate 
generals,  in  which  he  said :  "As  to  the  fatal,  but  necessary  opera 
tions  of  war,  when  we  assumed  the  soldier,  we  did  not  lay  aside  the 
citizen ;  and  we  shall  most  sincerely  rejoice  with  you  in  that  happy 
hour,  when  the  establishment  of  American  liberty  on  the  most  firm 
and  solid  foundations,  shall  enable  us  to  return  to  our  private  sta 
tions,  in  the  bosom  of  a  free,  peaceful,  and  happy  country." 

Four  hours  after  these  reception  ceremonies  were  ended,  Gov 
ernor  Try  on  landed,  and  the  military  and  civic  honors  of  the  after 
noon  were  partly  repeated.  The  loyalists  gave  him  very  hearty 
demonstrations  of  their  joy  in  his  presence  at  this  critical  juncture, 
nd  the  mayor  and  common  council  expressed  toward  him  their 
highest  regard.  Thus  ended  the  excitement  in  New  York  on 
Sunday,  the  twenty-fifth  of  June,  1775. 

When  the  public  ceremonies  were  over,  Washington's  thoughts 
turned  to  the  important  duties  of  his  station,  and  before  five  o'clock, 
he  had  despatched  a  courier  with  his  first  letters  to  the  continental 
Congress,  and  the  president  of  that  body.  He  informed  them  of 
his  arrival,  the  presence  of  Tryon,  his  intended  orders  to  General 
Schuyler,  his  intention  to  leave  for  the  camp  the  following  morning, 
and  the  scarcity  of  powder,  as  he  had  learned,  in  the  magazine  at 
Cambridge.  He  urged  the  immediate  adoption  of  measures  to 
supply  the  deficiency,  and  said,  "  One  thousand  pounds  in  weight 
were  sent  to  the  camp  at  Cambridge  three  days  ago,  from  this  city, 
which  has  left  the  place  almost  destitute  of  that  necessary  article ; 
there  being  at  this  time,  from  the  best  information,  not  more  than 
four  barrels  of  powder  in  the  city  of  New  York." 

Washington  and  Schuyler  spent  the  entire  evening  previous  to 


JE-r.  43.]  ELEMENTS  OF   WEAKNESS.  579 

the  departure  of  the  commander-in-chief  for  the  east,  in  earnest 
consultation  concerning  the  present  and  prospective  affairs  of  the 
northern  department.  The  charge  of  these  Washington  was  about 
to  leave  in  the  hands  of  Schuyler.  The  position  of  the  province 
of  New  York  was  peculiar,  both  geographically  and  politically. 
It  lay  between  New  England  and  the  middle  and  southern  prov 
inces,  and  formed  a  link  in  the  chain  of  the  confederacy,  upon 
which  depended  the  integrity  of  the  union  in  the  struggle  now  at 
hand.  Its  northern  frontier,  bordering  upon  a  province  practically 
neutral  if  not  actually  hostile  in  sentiment,  where,  already,  British 
power  and  influence  were  strongly  predominant,  was  peculiarly 
exposed  to  speedy  and  effective  invasions;  while  its  central  and 
western  regions  were  filled  with  the  powerful  tribes  of  the  Six 
Nations  of  Indians,  whose  almost  universal  loyalty  had  been  se 
cured  through  the  influence  of  the  Johnson  fiimily,  the  really  feudal 
lords  of  the  Mohawk  valley.  Nearer  the  seaboard,  and  in  the 
metropolis,  commercial  interests  and  strong  family  attachments  to 
the  crown  held  potent  sway,  and  neutralized,  to  a  great  extent,  the 
influence  of  sturdy  patriots,  who,  in  the  face  of  all  the  frowns  of 
authority  and  fears  of  the  timid,  kept  the  car  of  revolution  in 
continued  onward  motion.  Thus,  it  will  be  seen,  New  York  pre 
sented  to  the  keen  perception  of  Washington,  three  dangerous 
elements  of  weakness  as  a  member  of  the  confederacy,  namely : 
an  exposed  frontier,  a  wily  and  powerful  internal  foe,  and  a  subtle 
and  corroding  loyalty.  This  visible  weakness  gave  him  much 
uneasiness,  because  the  breaking  of  that  link  would  sever  New 
England  from  the  rest  of  the  confederation,  when  the  warm  life- 
blood  of  communication  and  co-operation  would  cease  to  flow 
between  the  head  and  heart  of  the  union,  and  speedy  death  must 
ensue.  With  the  preservation  of  the  strength  and  vitality  of  this 
link  Schuyler  was  charged  by  Washington;  and  never  was  an 
important  duty  left  in  more  efficient  and  trustworthy  hands. 

The  conference  of  the  two  generals  on  that  memorable  sabbath 
evening,  ended  by  the  preparation  of  instructions  for  Schuyler,  by 
the  commander-in-chief.  He  was  commissioned  to  "  take  command 


580  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  all  the  troops  destined  for  the  New  York  department,"  and  to 
see  that  the  orders  of  the  continental  Congress  were  obeyed ;  to 
occupy,  as  speedily  as  possible,  "  the  several  posts  recommended  by 
the  provincial  Congress"  of  New  York,  and  to  secure  the  stores 
which  were,  or  should  have  been,  removed  from  the  city,  pursuant 
to  orders  from  the  continental  Congress ;  to  keep  a  watchful  eye 
on  Governor  Tryon,  and  to  use  every  means  in  his  power  to  frus 
trate  any  measures  which  he  might  attempt,  inimical  to  the  com 
mon  cause.  "It  is  not  in  my  power,"  he  said,  "at  this  time,  to 
point  out  the  mode  by  which  this  end  is  to  be  accomplished ;  but 
if  forcible  measures  are  judged  necessary  respecting  the  person  of 
the  governor,  I  should  have  no  difficulty  in  ordering  them,  if  the 
continental  Congress  were  not  sitting;  but  as  this  is  the  case,  and 
the  seizing  of  a  governor  quite  a  new  thing,  and  of  great  import 
ance,  I  must  refer  you  to  that  body  for  direction,  should  his  excel 
lency  make  any  motion  towrard  increasing  the  strength  of  the  tory 
party,  or  arming  them  against  the  cause  in  which  we  are  embarked." 
He  likewise  directed  General  Schuyler  to  watch  the  movements  of 
Colonel  Guy  Johnson,  the  British  Indian  agent  in  the  Mohawk 
valley,  and  prevent,  as  far  as  possible,  his  mischievous  influence. 
He  was  also  instructed  to  ascertain  the  temper  and  dispositions  of 
the  Indians  and  Canadians,  and  adopt  a  conciliatory  policy  toward 
both. 

The  unscrupulous  characters  of  Tryon  and  the  Johnsons  presented 
sufficient  reasons  for  exercising  the  most  sleepless  vigilance  con 
cerning  their  movements.  Tryon  was  a  mercenary  Irishman, 
educated  for  the  profession  of  a  soldier,  and  was  innately  osten 
tatious,  avaricious,  cowardly,  and  cruel.  Connected  by  marriage 
with  the  earl  of  Hillsborough,  he  had  been  appointed  governor  of 
North  Carolina  while  that  nobleman  filled  the  office  of  colonial 
secretary.  In  that  new  and  undeserved  position,  he  became  ex 
ceedingly  odious  to  the  people;  and,  in  1771,  he  was  transferred  to 
the  chair  of  chief-magistrate  of  the  province  of  New  York,  where 
he  became  very  officious  in  strengthening  the  power  of  the  crown. 
Covetous  of  place  and  emolument,  it  was  well  known  that  he  would 


^ET.  43.]  THE  BARONS  OF  THE  MOHAWK.  581 

resort  to  any  measure,  however  wicked  or  dishonorable,  that  was 
calculated  to  secure  these  advantages ;  and  it  became  apparent  to 
the  mind  of  Washington,  after  his  conference  with  leading  patriots 
in  New  York,  that  a  seizure  of  the  governor  might  become  an  act 
of  prudence.  For  this  reason,  his  instructions  to  General  Schuyler 
were  made  sufficiently  broad  to  cover  such  a  contingency. 

The  Johnsons  (Sir  John  and  Guy),  who  were  brothers-in-law, 
maintained  the  sway  of  Sir  William,  the  father  of  Sir  John,  over 
the  Six  Nations.  That  sway  had  become  almost  imperial  in  the 
hands  of  Sir  William,  who,  for  forty  years,  had  lived  among  them, 
most  of  the  time  as  Indian  agent  for  the  British  government.  By 
presents,  conformity  in  dress,  and  other  appliances,  and  by  marriage 
with  the  sister  of  Brant,  the  great  Mohawk  chief,  he  had  become 
identified  with  the  Iroquois,  and  at  his  beck  a  thousand  warriors 
might,  at  any  time,  be  called  to  the  war-path.  When  the  storm  of 
the  Revolution  was  gathering,  Sir  William's  heart  was  troubled ;  and 
when  orders  came  from  England,  that  in  the  event  of  hostilities  he 
must  enlist  the  Six  Nations  in  the  cause  of  the  crown,  his  generous 
nature  revolted ;  and,  it  is  believed,  that  the  agitations  of  his  feel 
ings,  caused  thereby,  produced  the  stroke  of  apoplexy  which  termi 
nated  his  life  in  the  summer  of  1774. 

Sir  William's  son  and  heir,  Sir  John,  and  his  sons-in-law,  Colonel 
Guy  Johnson  and  Colonel  Daniel  Claus,  felt  no  compunctions  of 
conscience  in  making  use  of  harsh  measures  toward  those  engaged 
in  the  revolt.  Rudely  trained  in  the  forest,  with  many  loyal  Scotch 
Highlanders  tenanting  the  broad  acres  of  their  clearings  in  the 
Mohawk  country,  their  proclivities  were  anti-republican,  and  they 
readily  coalesced  with  such  bold,  bad  men  as  the  Butlers  of  Tryon 
count}',  and  with  the  less  savage  Brant  and  his  fellow-chieftains. 
Therefore,  as  soon  as  Sir  William  was  buried,  these  men  exhibited 
open  hostility  to  the  patriots.  The  Johnsons  had  recently  fortified 
their  strong  mansions,  had  held  a  grand  council  of  the  Six  Nations, 
had  armed  a  large  body  of  Roman  catholic  Highlanders,  and  had 
tampered  with  the  militia  of  that  region.  With  these  men  holding 
the  falchion  of  such  power  in  the  interior,  and  Tryon,  clothed 


531  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

with  vice-regal  potency,  having  at  his  command  ships-of-war  and 
expected  troops,*  in  the  harbor  of  the  seaport,  and  lording  over  the 
lower  waters  of  the  Hudson,  there  appeared  imminent  danger  of  a 
total  geographical  separation  of  New  England  from  the  other  colo 
nies.  Washington  and  the  people  had  faith  in  Schuyler  as  a  cham 
pion  to  stand  in  the  breach,  and  events  justified  that  confidence. 

On  Monday  afternoon,  the  twenty-sixth  of  June,  Washington  left 
New  York  for  the  camp,  accompanied  by  Generals  Lee  and  Schuy 
ler,  and  escorted  by  Markoe's  "  First  Troop,"  f  of  Philadelphia  light- 
horse,  and  several  New  York  militia  companies.  This  escort  left 
him  at  Kingsbridge,  at  the  northern  end  of  York  island,  about 
fourteen  miles  from  the  city,  and  there  Washington  and  his  com 
panions  remained  until  the  following  morning.  General  Schuyler 
accompanied  him  as  far  as  New  Kochelle,  in  Westchester  county, 
where  they  met  and  conferred  with  General  Wooster ;  and  at  ten 
o'clock,  Schuyler  mounted  his  horse,  bade  Washington  adieu,  and 
returned  to  New  York,  to  enter  upon  the  important  duties  of  his 
command.J 

The  command er-in-chief  was  escorted  from  place  to  place,  on  his 
journey  eastward,  by  militia  companies  and  citizens  on  horseback ; 
and  at  Springfield,  a  hundred  miles  from  Boston,  near  the  border 
line  between  Connecticut  and  Massachusetts,  he  was  met  by  a  depu 
tation  from  the  provincial  Congress  of  the  latter  colony,  then  in 
session  at  Watertown.  This  committee  (consisting  of  Doctor 
Benjamin  Church  and  Mr.  Moses  Gill)  had  provided  escorts  for  the 
remainder  of  the  journey,  and  they  attended  Washington,  in  per 
son,  all  the  way.  Everywhere  the  most  enthusiastic  demonstrations 
of  respect  and  affection  for  the  commander-in-chief  were  mani- 

*  A  rumor  prevailed,  that  a  regiment  of  troops  from  Ireland  would  soon  land  in  'New  York, 
whereupon  the  provincial  Congress,  in  sessjon  in  that  city,  resolved,  on  the  fifteenth  of  June,  to 
invite  General  Wooster,  then  in  command  of  the  Connecticut  forces  on  the  shores  of  Long  Island 
sound,  to  take  post  within  a  few  miles  of  New  York.  This  invitation  was  readily  accepted,  and 
approved  by  Governor  Trumbull,  the  chief-magistrate  of  that  colony ;  and  on  the  twenty-eighth  of 
June,  two  days  after  Washington  departed  for  Cambridge,  Wooster  marched  to  Harlem  with  eigh. 
teen  hundred  men,  where  he  lay  encamped  for  several  weeks. 

t  This  corps,  like  that  of  the  "  Ancient  and  Honorable  Artillery  Company"  of  Boston,  yet  re 
tains  its  organization. 

$  Schuyler's  MS.  Letter  Books. 


#h'.  43.]        WASHINGTON'S  RECEPTION  IN  NEW  ENGLAND.  583 

fested  by  the  people ;  and  the  progress  of  the  cavalcade  was  a  con 
tinuous  ovation. 

On  the  morning  of  the  second  of  July,  Washington  and  his 
attendants  reached  Watertown,  where  a  large  concourse  of  people 
were  assembled,  to  greet  and  welcome  the  eminent  Virginian. 
James  Warren,  of  Plymouth,  to  whom  his  Excellency  had  been 
referred  by  the  Massachusetts  delegation  in  the  continental  Con 
gress,  as  "  a  judicious,  confidential  friend,  who  would  never  deceive 
him,"*  was  president  of  the  provincial  Congress  in  session  there,  and 
in  the  name  of  that  body,  he  presented  to  Washington  a  congratu 
latory  address,  expressive  of  their  esteem,  and  strong  assurances  of 
their  "  aid  and  support  to  enable  him  to  discharge  the  duties  of  his 
arduous  and  exalted  station."f  To  this  Washington  replied: — 

"  Gentlemen,  your  kind  congratulations  on  my  appointment  and 
arrival,  demand  my  warmest  acknowledgments,  and  will  ever  be 
retained  in  grateful  remembrance.  In  exchanging  the  enjoyments 
of  domestic  life  for  the  duties  of  my  present  honorable  but  arduous 
station,  I  only  emulate  the  virtue  and  public  spirit  of  the  whole 
province  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  which,  with  a  firmness  and  patri 
otism  without  example  in  modern  history,  has  sacrified  all  the 
comforts  of  social  and  political  life  in  support  of  the  rights  of  man 
kind  and  the  welfare  of  our  common  country.  My  highest  ambi 
tion  is  to  be  the  happy  instrument  of  vindicating  those  rights,  and 
to  see  this  devoted  province  again  restored  to  peace,  liberty,  and 
safety."  He  then  referred  to  the  weak  state  of  the  army,  alluded 
to  in  the  address  of  the  president,  and  added,  "  Whatever  deficien 
cies  there  may  be,  will,  I  doubt  not,  soon  be  made  up  by  the  activity 
and  zeal  of  the  officers,  and  the  docility  and  obedience  of  the  men. 
These  qualities,  united  with  their  native  bravery  and  spirit,  will 
afford  a  happy  presage  of  success,  and  put  a  final  period  to  those 
distresses  which  now  overwhelm  this  once  happy  country." 

When  these  ceremonies  were  ended,  Washington  resumed  his 
journey,  escorted  by  a  troop  of  lightrhorse,  and  a  large  company 

*  Mercy  Warren's  "  History  of  the  Rise,  Progress,  and  Termination,  of  the  American  Revolution." 
t  General  Lee  was  also  honored  with  an  address  of  welcome. 


584  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  mounted  citizens,  and  at  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  the 
same  day,  he  arrived  at  the  headquarters  of  the  army  at  Cam 
bridge,  amid  the  shouts  of  a  great  multitude  of  citizens  and  sol 
diers,  the  clangor  of  bells,  the  strains  of  martial  music,  and  the 
waving  of  banners.  The  musket  and  the  cannon  were  silent  on 
that  occasion,  because  the  provincial  Congress  had  prudently  given 
such  orders  for  "  their  honorable  reception  as  might  accord  with  the 
rules  and  circumstances  of  the  army,  and  the  respect  due  to  their 
rank,  without !,  however,  any  expense  of  powder,  and  without  taking  the 
troops  from  the  necessary  attention  to  their  duty  at  this  crisis  of 
our  affairs."  Washington  was  then  escorted  to  the  house  which 
had  been  lately  occupied  partly  by  President  Warren,  and  partly 
by  a  regiment  from  Marblehead,  and  had  been  fitted  up  by  order  of 
the  provincial  Congress,  as  permanent  headquarters  for  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  and  the  temporary  residence  of  General  Lee.* 

*  This  dwelling,  known  as  the  "  Cragie  House,"  is  yet  perfectly  preserved,  and  is  the  residence 
of  Professor  Henry  Wadsworth  Longfellow,  the  eminent  American  poet.  It  stands  a  little  back 
from  the  street,  which  was  once  the  highway  from  ^  Harvard  university  to  Waltham.  At  this  man 
sion,  and  at  Winter  Hill,  Washington  passed  most  of  his  time,  after  taking  command  of  the  Conti 
nental  army,  until  the  evacuation  of  Boston  by  the  British,  the  following  spring. 


JET.  43.1  ARRIVAL  OF  GATES  AND  SULLIVAN.  587 

the  continental  army.  That  was  an  auspicious  act  for  America; 
and  the  love  and  reverence  then  felt  for  Washington  never  waned 
during  the  eight  long  years  of  the  conflict.  Upon  his  bright  weapon 
might  have  been  worthily  inscribed  the  lofty  words  which  the  old 
Spaniards  used  to  engrave  on  their  Toledo  blades :  "  Never  draw  me 
without  reason :  Never  sheath  me  tvithout  honor  /" 

Washington's  first  care  after  assuming  the  command  of  the  army, 
was  to  ascertain  its  condition,  and  the  character  and  position  of  the 
enemy's  works.  During  that  day  he  visited  the  several  American 
posts.  A  heavy  thunder-shower  that  fell  upon  the  camp  in  the 
afternoon  was  the  precursor  of  a  storm  that  continued  about  thirty- 
six  hours,  and  prevented  his  Excellency  leaving  headquarters  until  • 
the  morning  of  the  fifth,  when  he  set  out  with  General  Lee  and 
other  officers,  to  reconnoitre  the  seacoast  eastward  of  Boston  harbor. 
On  his  return,  toward  evening,  he  was  gratified  by  the  presence  of 
Generals  Gates  and  Sullivan,  who  had  arrived  during  the  day  ;* 
and  on  the  following  morning,  accompanied  by  these  officers,  also, 
he  visited  all  of  the  Americans  posts,  and  further  reconnoitred  the 
works  of  the  British.  When  these  labors  were  accomplished,  and 
he  had  procured  such  information  from  the  American  officers,  as 
enabled  him  to  give  a  pretty  accurate  account  of  the  number  and 
condition  of  the  army,  he  wrote  a  long  statement  thereof  to  the 
president  of  the  continental  Congress.  This  letter,  dated  "  Camp, 
at  Cambridge,  10th  July,  1775,"  presents  such  a  graphic  picture 
of  affairs  that  it  is  deemed  proper  to  insert  it  here,  in  full,  as  fol 
lows  : — 

"  SIR  :  I  arrived  safe  at  this  place  on  the  third  instant,  after  a  jour 
ney  attended  with  a  good  deal  of  fatigue,  and  retarded  by  necessary 
attention  to  the  successive  civilities  which  accompanied  me  in  my 
whole  route. 

*  Immediately  after  Gates's  appointment,  Washington  wrote  to  him,  apprizing  him  of  the  honor, 
and  expressing  his  gratification.  To  this  letter  Gates  immediately  replied,  in  the  most  cordial  manner, 
and  concluded  by  saying  :  "  I  will  not  intrude  more  upon  your  time,  only  to  assure  you,  that  I  shall 
not  lose  a  moment  in  paying  you  my  personal  attendance,  with  the  greatest  respect  for  your  charac 
ter,  and  the  sincerest  attachment  to  your  person." — Sparks's  "  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington," 
iii.  (note),  7.  The  reader  will  learn,  in  future  pages,  how  ungenerously  Gates  requited  the  kindness 
of  Washington. 


588  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

"  Upon  my  arrival  I  immediately  visited  the  several  posts  occu 
pied  by  our  troops  ;*  and,  as  soon  as  the  weather  permitted,  recon 
noitred  those  of  the  enemy.  I  found  the  latter  strongly  intrenched 
on  Bunker's  hill,  about  a  mile  from  Charlestown,  and  advanced 
about  half  a  mile  from  the  place  of  the  late  action,  with  their 
Gentries  extended  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  on  this  side 
of  the  narrowest  part  of  the  neck  leading  from  this  place  to 
Charlestown.  Three  floating  batteries  lie  in  Mystic  river  near  the 
camp,  and  one  twenty-gun  ship  below  the  ferry-place,  between 
Boston  and  Charlestown.  They  have  also  a  battery  on  Copse 
[Copp's]  hill,  on  the  Boston  side,  which  much  annoyed  our  troops 
•  in  the  late  attack.  Upon  the  neck  [Roxbury],  they  have  also 
deeply  intrenched  and  fortified.  Their  advanced  guards,  till  last 
Saturday  morning,  occupied  Brown's  houses,  about  a  mile  from 
Roxbury  meetinghouse,  and  twenty  roods  from  their  lines ;  but,  at 
that  time,  a  party  from  General  Thomas's  camp  surprised  the  guard, 
drove  them  in  and  burned  the  houses.f  The  bulk  of  their  army, 
commanded  by  General  Howe,  lies  on  Bunker's  hill,  and  the  re- 


*  The  following  general  order  was  issued  on  the  fourth  of  July,  the  day  after  Washington  took 
command  of  the  army  : — 

"  The  continental  Congress  having  now  taken  all  the  troops  of  the  several  colonies,  which  have 
been  raised,  or  which  may  be  hereafter  raised  for  the  support  and  defence  of  the  liberties  of  America, 
into  their  pay  and  service,  they  are  now  the  troops  of  the  UNITED  PROVINCES  OF  NORTH  AMERICA  ; 
and  it  is  hoped  that  all  distinction  of  colonies  will  be  laid  aside,  so  that  one  and  the  same  spirit  may 
animate  the  whole,  and  the  only  contest  be,  who  shall  render,  on  this  great  and  trying  occasion,  the 
most  essential  service  to  the  great  and  common  cause  in  which  we  are  all  engaged.  It  is  required 
and  expected  that  exact  discipline  be  observed,  and  due  subordination  prevail  through  the  whole 
army,  as  a  failure  in  these  most  essential  points  must  necessarily  produce  extreme  hazard,  disorder, 
and  confusion,  and  end  in  shameful  disappointment  and  disgrace.  The  general  most  earnestly  re 
quires  and  expects  a  due  observance  of  those  articles  of  war,  established  for  the  government  of  the 
armv,  which  forbid  profane  cursing,  swearing,  and  drunkenness ;  and  in  like  manner,  he  requires 
and  expects  of  all  officers  and  soldiers,  not  engaged  on  actual  duty,  a  punctual  attendance  on  divine 
service,  to  implore  the  blessings  of  Heaven  upon  the  means  used  for  our  safety  and  defence." 

This  brief  order  may  be  regarded  as  a  model.  In  a  few  words,  it  evokes  harmony,  order,  the 
exercise  of  patriotism,  morality,  sobriety,  and  an  humble  reverence  for,  and  reliance  upon,  Divine 
Providence.  It  includes  all  the  essential  elements  of  good  government.  These  principles  were  the 
moral  bonds  of  union  that  kept  the  little  continental  army  together  during  the  dreary  years  of  its 
struggle  for  the  mastery. 

t  "June  26. — This  morning,  very  early,  our  men  went  to  set  Brown's  house  on  fire,  but  did  not 
effect  it." 

"  Juiy  7. — Early  in  the  morning  we  were  alarmed,  and  all  of  us  repaired  to  our  alarm  posts. 
We  had  not  been  there  long  before  we  saw  Brown's  house  and  barn  on  fire.  They  were  both  con 
sumed.  These  were  set  on  fire  by  some  of  our  brave  Americans  ;  and  they  took  one  gun,  two  bay 
onets,  and  one  halbert." — MS.  Journal  of  a  private  soldier  from  Wrent/iam. 


&T.  43.]  POSITION  OF  THE  AMERICAN  ARMY.  589 

mainder  on  Roxbury  Neck,  except  the  light-horse,  and  a  few  men 
in  the  town  of  Boston. 

"On  one  side  we  have  thrown  up  intrenchments  on  Winter 
and  Prospect  hills  —  the  enemy's  camp  in  full  view,  at  a  distance  of 
little  more  than  a  mile.  Such  intermediate  points  as  would  admit 
a  landing,  I  have,  since  my  arrival,  taken  care  to  strengthen,  down 
to  Sewall's  farm,  where  a  strong  intrenchment  has  been  thrown  up. 
At  Roxbury,  General  Thomas  has  thrown  up  a  strong  work  on  the 
hill,  about  two  hundred  yards  above  the  meetinghouse ;  which,  with 
the  brokenness  of  the  ground,  and  a  great  number  of  rocks,  has 
made  that  pass  very  secure.*  The  troops  raised  in  New  Hamp 
shire,  with  a  regiment  from  Rhode  Island,  occupy  Winter  hill:  a 
part  of  those  from  Connecticut,  under  General  Putnam,  are  on 
Prospect  hill.  The  troops  in  this  town  [Cambridge]  are  entirely 
of  the  Massachusetts ;  the  remainder  of  the  Rhode  Island  men  are 
at  Sewall's  farm.  Two  regiments  of  Connecticut,  and  nine  of  the 
Massachusetts,  are  at  Roxbury.  The  residue  of  the  army,  to  the 
number  of  about  seven  hundred,  are  posted  in  several  small  towns 
along  the  coast  to  prevent  depredations  of  the  enemy. 

"  Upon  the  whole,  I  think  myself  authorized  to  say,  that  con 
sidering  the  great  extent  of  line,  and  the  nature  of  the  ground,  we 
are  as  well  secured  as  could  be  expected  in  so  short  a  time,  and 
under  the  disadvantages  we  labor.  These  consist  in  a  want  of 
engineers  to  construct  proper  works  and  direct  the  men,  a  want  of 
tools,  and  a  sufficient  number  of  men  to  man  the  works  in  case  of 
an  attack.  You  will  observe,  by  the  proceedings  of  the  council  of 
war  which  I  have  the  honor  to  inclose,  that  it  is  our  unanimous 
opinion  to  hold  and  defend  these  works  as  long  as  possible.^ 

*  This  was  the  strongest  and  the  only  regular  work  cast  up  by  the  Americans  near  Boston,  of 
which  any  traces  at  present  remain.  This  was  called  Roxbitry  fort,  and  appears  to  have  been  con 
structed  chiefly  by  the  Rhode  Island  troops.  It  was  a  strong  quadrangular  work  of  earth,  built 
upon  rocks  of  "pudding-stone,"  with  bastions  at  each  angle.  The  magazine  appears  to  have  been 
on  the  southwest  side,  near  which  was  a  covered-way  and  sally-port.  A  plan  of  this  work,  and  a 
small  view  of  its  appearance  in  1850,  may  be  found  in  Lossing's  "Pictorial  Field-Book  of  the 
Revolution,"  ii.,  592,  second  edition. 

t  Washington  called  a  council  of  war  on  the  ninth  of  July.  It  consisted  of  the  major-generals 
and  the  brigadiers.  The  object  was  to  take  into  consideration  the  present  state  of  the  army,  and  to 
consult  upon  future  operations.  It  was  estimated  by  that  council  that,  from  the  be&t  information 


590  WASHINGTON:    ABIOGRAPH1.  [1775. 

The  discouragement  it  would  give  the  men,  and  its  contrary  effects 
on  the  ministerial  troops,  thus  to  abandon  our  encampment  in  their 
face,  formed  with  so  much  labor,  added  to  the  certain  destruction 
of  a  considerable  and  valuable  extent  of  country,  and  our  uncer 
tainty  of  finding  a  place  in  all  respects  so  capable  of  making  a 
stand,  are  leading  reasons  for  this  determination.  At  the  same 
time  we  are  very  sensible  of  the  difficulties  which  attend  the 
defence  of  lines  of  so  great  extent,  and  the  dangers  which  may 
ensue  from  such  a  division  of  the  army. 

"  My  earnest  wish  to  comply  with  the  instructions  of  the  Con 
gress,  in  making  an  early  and  complete  return  of  the  state  of  the 
army,  has  led  into  an  involuntary  delay  of  addressing  you ;  which 
has  given  me  much  concern.  Having  given  orders  for  this  purpose 
immediately  on  my  arrival ;  and  unapprized  of  the  imperfect  obedi 
ence  which  had  been  paid  to  those  of  the  like  nature  from  General 
Ward,  I  was  led  from  day  to  day,  to  expect  they  would  come  in, 
and  therefore  detained  the  messenger.  They  are  not  now  so  com 
plete  as  I  could  wish ;  but  much  allowance  is  to  be  made  for  inex 
perience  in  forms,  and  a  liberty  which  had  been  taken  (not  given) 
on  this  subject.  These  reasons,  I  flatter  myself,  will  no  longer 
exist ;  and,  of  consequence,  more  regularity  and  exactness  will  in 
future  prevail.  This,  with  a  necessary  attention  to  the  lines,  the 
movements  of  the  ministerial  troops,  and  our  immediate  security, 
must  be  my  apology,  which  I  beg  you  to  lay  before  Congress  with 
the  utmost  duty  and  respect. 

"  We  labor  under  great  disadvantages  for  want  of  tents ;  for, 
though  they  have  been  helped  out  by  a  collection  of  now  useless 
sails  from  the  seaport  towns,  the  number  is  far  short  of  our  neces 
sities.  The  colleges  and  houses  of  this  town  are  necessarily  occu 
pied  by  the  troops ;  which  affords  another  reason  for  keeping  our 

which  could  be  obtained,  the  forces  of  the  enemy  consisted  of  eleven  thousand  five  hundred  effective 
men,  while  the  Americans  had  only  about  fourteen  thousand  fit  for  duty.  Taking  this  view  of  the 
comparative  strength  of  the  two  armies,  the  council  unanimously  resolved  to  maintain  the  siege,  by 
strengthening  the  posts  then  held  by  the  Americans,  by  fortifications  and  recruits.  It  was  agreed 
that,  if  the  troops  should  be  attacked  and  routed  by  the  enemy  the  place  of  rendezvous  should  be 
Wales's  hill,  in  the  rear  of  the  Roxbury  lines.  It  was  also  agreed,  that  a  force  of  twenty-two 
thousand  men,  at  least,  was  necessary  to  act  against  the  enemy. 


/Er.  43.]  COMMISSARY-GENERAL  APPOINTED.  591 

present  situation.  But  I  most  sincerely  wish  the  whole  army  was 
properly  provided  to  take  the  field,  as  I  am  well  assured,  that 
(besides  greater  expedition  and  activity  in  case  of  alarm),  it  would 
highly  conduce  to  health  and  discipline.  As  materials  are  not  to 
be  had  here,  I  would  beg  leave  to  recommend  the  procuring  a 
further  supply  from  Philadelphia,  as  soon  as  possible. 

"  I  should  be  extremely  deficient  in  gratitude  as  well  as  justice, 
if  I  did  not  take  the  first  opportunity  to  acknowledge  the  readiness 
and  attention  which  the  provincial  Congress  and  different  commit 
tees  have  shown,  to  make  everything  as  convenient  and  agreeable 
as  possible.*  But  there  is  a  vital  and  inherent  principle  of  delay, 
incompatible  with  military  service,  in  transacting  business  through 
such  numerous  and  different  channels.  I  esteem  it,  therefore,  my 
duty  to  represent  the  inconvenience  which  must  unavoidably  ensue 
from  a  dependence  on  a  number  of  persons  for  supplies ;  and  sub 
mit  it  for  the  consideration  of  Congress,  whether  the  public  service 
will  not  be  best  promoted  by  appointing  a  commissary-general  for 
these  purposes.  We  have  a  striking  instance  of  the  preference  of 
such  a  mode,  in  the  establishment  of  Connecticut,  as  their  troops 
are  extremely  well  provided,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Trumbull, 
and  he  has,  at  different  times,  assisted  others  with  various  articles. 
Should  my  sentiments  happily  coincide  with  those  of  your  honors 
on  this  subject,  I  beg  leave  to  recommend  Mr.  Trumbull  as  a  very 
proper  person  for  this  department.-}*  In  the  arrangement  of  troops 
collected  under  such  circumstances,  and  upon  the  spur  of  imme 
diate  necessity,  several  appointments  are  omitted,  which  appear  to 
be  indispensably  necessary  for  the  good  government  of  the  army, 
particularly  a  quartermaster-general,  a  commissary  of  musters,  and 


*  The  committee  on  the  state  of  the  province,  the  committee  of  safety,  and  the  committee  of 
supplies,  are  here  referred  to.  The  Massachusetts  delegation  in  Congress  had,  at  the  request  of 
Washington,  given  him  a  list  of  distinguished  New  England  men,  on  whom  he  might  rely  for  council 
and  efficient  aid. 

t  This  was  Joseph  Trumbull,  the  eldest  son  of  Jonathan  Trumbull,  the  republican  governor  of 
Connecticut.  He  had  been  one  of  the  active  Sons  of  Liberty,  at  Norwich,  in  that  province,  and  held 
a  captain's  commission  in  the  Connecticut  line,  having,  as  an  officer  of  the  militia,  acted  efficiently 
as  a  commissary.  On  the  nineteenth  of  July,  the  continental  Congress,  on  this  recommendation, 
appointed  him  commissary-general  of  the  army. 


59-2  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

a  commisary  of  artillery.  These  I  must  earnestly  recommend  to 
the  notice  and  provision  of  the  Congress.* 

"  I  find  myself  already  much  embarrassed  for  want  of  a  military- 
chest.  These  embarrassments  will  increase  every  day :  I  must, 
therefore,  request  that  money  be  forwarded  as  soon  as  possible. 
The  want  of  this  most  necessary  article  will  (I  fear),  produce  great 
inconveniences,  if  not  prevented  by  an  early  attention.  I  find  the 
army  in  general,  and  the  troops  raised  in  Massachusetts  in  particu 
lar,  very  deficient  in  necessary  clothing.  Upon  inquiry,  there 
appears  no  probability  of  obtaining  any  supplies  in  this  quarter: 
and  on  the  best  consideration  of  this  matter  I  am  able  to  form,  I 
am  of  opinion  that  a  number  of  hunting-shirts  (not  less  than  ten 
thousand)  would,  in  a  great  degree,  remove  this  difficulty,  in  the 
cheapest  and  quickest  manner.  I  know  nothing,  in  a  speculative 
view,  more  trivial,  yet,  if  put  in  practice,  would  have  a  happier 
tendency  to  unite  the  men,  and  abolish  those  provincial  distinctions 
which  lead  to  jealousy  and  dissatisfaction.^ 

"  In  a  former  part  of  this  letter,  I  mentioned  the  want  of  engi 
neers.  I  can  hardly  express  the  disappointment  I  have  experienced 
on  this  subject — the  skill  of  those  we  have  being  very  imperfect, 
and  confined  to  the  mere  manual  exercise  of  cannon  •  whereas  the 
war  in  which  we  are  engaged  requires  a  knowledge  comprehending 
the  duties  of  the  field  and  fortification.  If  any  persons  thus  quali 
fied  are  to  be  found  in  the  southern  colonies,  it  would  be  of  great 
public  service  to  forward  them  with  all  expedition. 

"  Upon  the  article  of  ammunition,  I  must  re-echo  the  former 
complaints  on  this  subject.  We  are  so  exceedingly  destitute,  that 
our  artillery  will  be  of  little  use  without  a  supply  both  large  and 
seasonable.  What  we  have  must  be  reserved  for  the  small  arms, 
and  that  managed  with  the  utmost  frugality." 

Washington  then  referred  to  the  injudicious  appointment  of 
general  officers  in  the  provinces  of  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut, 

*  Congress  considered  this  application,  and  left  the  appointment  of  these  officers  to  the  com- 
mander-in-chief. 

t  The  reader  will  remember  how  well  a  recommendation  of  a  similar  costume,  made  by  Wash 
ington  on  the  expedition  to  Fort  Duquesne,  in  1758,  was  received  by  officers  and  men. 


OFFICIAL  CHANGES. 


593 


which  had  produced  great  dissatisfaction  in  the  army.  Owing  to 
the  generally  expressed  discontent,  and  the  apparent  danger  of 
disordering  the  whole  army,  together  with  strong  representations 
made  by  the  provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts,  Washington 
determined  to  retain  the  commission  in  his  hands,  except  that  of 
Putnam,  until  the  further  pleasure  of  the  continental  Congress 
should  be  known.  He  had  given  Putnam  his  commission  on  the 
day  of  his  arrival  at  Cambridge,  before  he  had  heard  of  these 
dissatisfactions.  He  disclaimed  any  private  attachments,  as  every 
officer  appointed  was  a  stranger  to  him,  personally ;  and  the  only 
consideration  by  which  he  was  influenced  was  the  public  good. 

General  Spencer  was  so  offended  because  of  General  Putnam's 
promotion,  that  he  left  the  army  without  communicating  his  in 
tentions  to  the  commander-in-chief,  or  even  visiting  him  after  his 
arrival.  Pomeroy  had  already  retired,  because  of  some  disappoint 
ment  in  the  action  of  the  Massachusetts  provincial  Congress. 
Spencer  was  subsequently  induced  to  take  rank  after  Putnam ;  and 
Pomeroy,  at  a  later  period,  led  the  militia  of  his  neighborhood  to 
the  Hudson  river,  when  the  Jerseys  were  overrun  by  the  enemy. 
He  was  not  permitted  to  cross  that  stream,  however,  for  he  died 
at  Peekskill,  on  its  eastern  bank,  late  in  December,  1776.  As  we 
have  already  observed,  these  changes  caused  Thomas  to  be  made 
the  first  brigadier-general,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  all,  for  he 
was  an  excellent  officer,  and  was  popular  with  the  troops.  After 
a  brief  statement  of  these  difficulties  (which  show  Washington's 
innate  love  of  justice),  his  excellency  continued : — 

"  The  state  of  the  army  you  will  find  ascertained  with  tolerable 
precision  in  the  returns  which  accompany  this  letter.*  Upon 

*  Those  returns  were  quite  imperfect.  On  the  nineteenth,  Adjutant-General  Gates  presented  the 
following  more  reliable  returns  : — 


No  of 

ission 

Ka 

ik  and  file. 

Colonies. 

regi 
ments. 

e,l  officers 
and  CM  If. 

officers. 

Present  fit  for 
duty. 

Sick 
present 

Su-k 
absent. 

On  fur 
lough. 

niand. 

Total. 

Massachusetts.. 
Connecticut..  .  . 
New  Hampshire 
lihode  Island  .  . 

26 
3 
3 
3 

789 
125 
98 
107 

1,326 
174 
160 
108 

9,396 
2,105 
1,201 
1,041 

757 

212 
115 
24 

450 
2 
20 
18 

311 
14 

49 
2 

774 

279 

11,688 
2,333 
1,664 
1,085 

Total  

35 

1,119 

1,768 

13,743 

1,108 

490 

376 

1,053 

16,770 

38 


594  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

finding  the  number  of  men  to  fall  so  far  short  of  the  establishment, 
and  below  all  expectation,  I  immediately  called  a  council  of  the 
general  officers,  whose  opinion  (as  to  the  mode  of  filling  up  the 
regiments,  and  providing  for  the  present  exigency),  I  have  the 
honor  of  inclosing,  together  with  the  best  judgment  we  are  able 
to  form  of  the  ministerial  troops.  From  the  number  of  boys, 
deserters,  and  negroes,  that  have  been  enlisted  in  the  troops  of 
this  province,  I  entertain  some  doubts  whether  the  number  required 
can  be  raised  here :  and  all  the  general  officers  agree,  that  no 
dependence  can  be  put  on  the  militia,  for  a  continuance  in  camp, 
or  regularity  and  discipline  during  the  short  time  they  may  stay. 
This  unhappy  and  devoted  province  has  been  so  long  in  a  state  of 
anarchy,  and  the  yoke  of  oppression  has  been  laid  so  heavily  upon 
it,  that  great  allowances  are  to  be  made  for  troops  raised  under 
such  circumstances.  The  deficiency  of  numbers,  discipline,  and 
stores,  can  only  lead  to  this  conclusion — that  their  spirit  had 
exceeded  their  strength.  But,  at  the  same  time,  I  would  humbly 
submit  to  the  consideration  of  Congress,  the  propriety  of  making 
some  further  provision  of  men  from  the  other  colonies.  If  these 
regiments  should  be  completed  to  their  establishment,  the  dismis 
sion  of  those  unfit  for  duty  on  account  of  their  age  and  character, 
would  occasion  a  considerable  reduction ;  and,  at  all  events,  they 
have  been  enlisted  upon  such  terms,  that  they  may  be  disbanded 
when  other  troops  arrive.  But  should  my  apprehensions  be  realized, 
and  the  regiments  here  not  filled  up,  the  public  cause  would  suffer 
by  an  absolute  dependence  upon  so  doubtful  an  event,  unless  some 
provision  is  made  against  such  a  disappointment. 

"  It  requires  no  military  skill  to  judge  of  the  difficulty  of  intro 
ducing  proper  discipline  and  subordination  into  an  army  wrhile  we 
have  the  enemy  in  view,  and  are  in  daily  expectation  of  an  attack ; 
but  it  is  of  so  much  importance,  that  every  effort  will  be  made, 
which  time  and  circumstances  will  admit.  In  the  meantime,  I  have 
a  sincere  pleasure  in  observing,  that  there  are  materials  for  a  good 
army  —  a  great  number  of  able-bodied  men,  active,  zealous  in  the 
cause,  and  of  unquestionable  courage."  After  alluding  to  a  com- 


/Ex.  43.]  PICTURE  OF  THE  ARMY.  595 

munication  which  he  had  received  from  Congress,  and  the  arrival 
of  Gates  and  Sullivan,  Washington  continued : — 

"  My  best  abilities  are  at  all  times  devoted  to  the  service  of  my 
country;  but  I  feel  the  weight,  importance,  and  variety,  of  my 
present  duties  too  sensibly  not  to  wish  a  more  immediate  and 
frequent  communication  with  the  Congress.  I  fear  it  may  often 
happen,  in  the  course  of  our  present  operations,  that  I  shall  need 
that  assistance  and  direction  from  them  which  time  and  distance 
will  not  allow  me  receive."* 

This  outline  of  the  army  at  Boston,  sketched  by  the  pen  of 
Washington,  is  made  more  complete  and  effective  by  the  following 
details  wrought  by  the  hand  of  a  chaplain  of  one  of  the  regiments.f 
It  gives  a  richness  of  light  and  shade  to  the  picture.  "  New  lords, 
new  laws,"  wrote  the  chaplain.  "The  generals,  Washington  and 
Lee,  are  upon  the  lines  every  day.  New  orders  from  his  Excellency 
are  read  to  the  respective  regiments  every  morning  after  prayers. 
The  strictest  government  is  taking  place,  and  great  distinction  is 
made  between  officers  and  soldiers.  Every  one  is  made  to  know 
his  place,  and  keep  in  it,  or  to  be  tied  up  and  receive  thirty  or  forty 
lashes,  according  to  his  crime.  Thousands  are  at  work  every  day, 
from  four  till  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning.  It  is  surprising  how 
much  work  has  been  done.  The  lines  are  extended  almost  from 
Cambridge  to  the  Mystic  river ;  so  that  very  soon  it  will  be  morally 
impossible  for  the  enemy  to  get  between  the  works,  except  in  one 
place,  which  is  supposed  to  be  left  purposely  unfortified,  to  entice 
the  enemy  out  of  their  fortresses.  Who  would  have  thought,  twelve 
months  past,  that  all  Cambridge  and  Charlestown  would  be  covered 
over  with  American  camps,  and  cut  up  into  forts  and  intrenchments, 
and  all  the  lands,  fields,  and  orchards  laid  common — horses  and 
cattle  feeding  in  the  choicest  mowing  land,  whole  fields  of  corn 
eaten  down  to  the  ground,  and  large  parks  of  well-regulated  locusts 
cut  down  for  firewood  and  other  public  uses.  This,  I  must  say, 
looks  a  little  melancholy.  My  quarters  are  at  the  foot  of  the 

*  Washington's  "Official  Letters,"  copied  "by  special  permission  from  the  original  papers  pre 
served  in  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  state,  Philadelphia."     London;  1795. 
t  Reverend  William  Emerson,  of  Concord,  Massachusetts. 


596  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

famous  Prospect  hill,  where  such  preparations  are  made  for  the 
reception  of  the  enemy.  It  is  very  diverting  to  walk  among  the 
camps.  They  are  as  different  in  their  form  as  the  owners  are  in 
their  dress,  and  every  tent  is  a  portraiture  of  the  temper  and  taste 
of  the  persons  who  encamp  in  it.  Some  are  made  of  boards,  and 
some  of  sail-cloth;  some  partly  of  one  and  partly  of  the  other. 
Again,  others  are  made  of  stone  or  turf,  brick  or  brush.  Some  are 
thrown  up  in  a  hurry ;  others  are  curiously  WTOUght  with  doors 
and  windows,  done  with  wreaths  and  withes,  in  the  manner  of  a 
basket.  Some  are  your  proper  tents  and  marquees,  looking  like 
the  regular  camp  of  the  enemy.  In  these  are  the  Rhode-Islanders, 
who  are  furnished  with  tent-equipage  and  everything  in  the  most 
exact  English  style.  However,  I  think  this  great  variety  rather  a 
beauty  than  a  blemish  in  the  army." 

Notwithstanding  the  general  hopefulness  of  the  tone  of  Wash 
ington's  letters  to  the  president  of  Congress,  he  perceived  many 
things  that  wrould  have  dismayed  a  less  courageous  and  self-reliant 
spirit.  Every  day  some  new  difficulty — some  weakness  unob 
served  before  —  presented  itself,  but  the  resolution  and  indomitable 
perseverance  of  the  commander-in-chief,  seemed  to  be  heightened 
by  the  appearance  of  every  new  obstacle.  For  example :  on 
his  arrival  in  camp,  he  ordered  a  return  of  the  powder  to  be 
made  to  him.  Three  hundred  and  three  barrels  were  reported  as 
in  store.  A  few  days  afterward  the  alarming  discovery  was  made, 
that  the  committee  of  supplies  had,  by  mistake,  returned  the 
amount  which  had  been  originally  furnished  by  the  province,  when, 
in  fact,  the  actual  quantity  on  hand  was  not  more  than  sufficient  to 
furnish  each  man  with  nine  cartridges  !  For  a  fortnight  after  this  dis 
covery  not  a  grain  of  powder  was  added  to  his  store,  yet  Washington 
worked  on  hopefully.  And  then  the  small  supply  that  he  received 
was  furnished  under  disheartening  circumstances.  It  was  sent  by 
stealth,  by  the  committee  of  safety  at  Elizabethtown,  New  Jersey, 
for  they  feared  the  people  would  seize  it,  and  retain  it  for  their 
own  use.  Easy  would  have  been  Howe's  conquest  had  he  left 
Boston  with  his  army,  at  that  time,  and  attacked  the  Americans. 


JE-f.  43.]  WORDS  OF  ENCOURAGEMENT.  597 

But  in  the  midst  of  all  of  his  discouragements  at  the  beginning, 
Washington  had  the  confidence  and  the  prayers  of  the  wise  and 
good  to  cheer  him  in  the  great  work  upon  which  he  had  entered. 
General  Schuyler  wrote  to  him  from  New  York,  on  the  first  of 
July,  and  concluded  his  letter  writh  the  affectionate  words  :  "  That 
success  and  happiness  equal  to  the  merit  and  virtue  of  my  general, 
may  crown  all  his  operations  is  the  wish  of  every  honest  American, 
and  of  none  more  sincerely  than  me."* 

Eichard  Henry  Lee,  of  Virginia,  writing  at  Philadelphia,  on  the 
first  of  July,  said :  "  Every  man  in  this  assembly  [the  continental 
Congress]  feels  the  delicacy  as  well  as  the  importance  of  your 
position.  You  have  the  entire  confidence  of  all ;  and  the  Congress 
will  sustain  you  to  the  utmost  of  their  ability.  In  the  present 
critical  state  of  affairs  we  all  regard  your  appointment  as  provi 
dential  ;  for  your  military  experience,  sound  judgment,  and  caution, 
are  guaranties  of  success,  if  it  can  be  accomplished  by  the  exercise 
of  these  qualities."  Washington  replied  to  Mr.  Lee  on  the  tenth ; 
and  to  this  intimate  friend  of  his  childhood,  he  expressed  some  of 
the  apprehensions  which  at  times  possessed  his  mind.  "  Between 
you  and  me,"  he  wrote,  "  I  think  we  are  in  an  exceedingly  dan 
gerous  situation,  as  our  numbers  are  not  much  larger  than  we 
suppose  those  of  the  enemy  to  be,  from  the  best  accounts  we  are 
able  to  get....  The  abuses  in  the  army,  I  fear,  are  considerable, 
and  the  new  modelling  of  it,  in  the  face  of  an  enemy,  from  whom 
we  every  hour  expect  an  attack,  is  exceedingly  difficult  and  dan 
gerous.  If  things,  therefore,  should  not  turn  out  as  the  Congress 
would  wish,  I  hope  they  will  make  proper  allowances.  I  can  only 
promise  and  assure  them,  that  my  whole  time  is  devoted  to  their 
service,  and  that  as  far  as  my  judgment  goes,  they  shall  have  no 
cause  to  complain." 

From  that  excellent  patriot,  Governor  Nicholas  Cooke,  of  Ehode 
Island,  Washington  received  a  cheering  and  congratulatory  letter 
during  those  days  of  suspense,  assuring  him  that  he  might  depend 
upon  the  cordial  co-operation  of  himself  and  his  colony ;  and  from 

*  Schuylcr's  MS.  Letter  Books. 


598  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

that  noble  soul,  Governor  Jonathan  Trumbull,  of  Connecticut,  there 
came  such  words  of  faith  and  hope,  that  Washington's  full  heart 
could  not  withhold  the  warmest  expression  of  thanks,  in  return. 

Of  all  the  venerated  patriots  who  upheld  the  hands  of  the  com 
mand  er-in-chief,  during  the  war,  no  one  was  more  truly  loved  by 
him,  than  Jonathan  Trumbull.  Serious  from  childhood,  he  was,  from 
choice,  educated  for  the  ministry,  but  was  drawn  into  mercantile 
life  with  his  father,  at  Lebanon,  Connecticut,  by  the  death  of  an 
elder  brother.  Active  and  judicious,  he  was  elected  to  a  seat  in 
the  general  assembly  of  his  native  province  at  an  early  age ;  and 
in  1766,  he  was  chosen  lieutenant-governor  of  Connecticut.  Three 
years  afterward  he  was  chosen  governor,  as  a  patriot  of  firmest 
mould  in  those  exciting  times ;  and  he  bore  the  proud  distinction 
of  being  the  only  colonial  chief-magistrate,  at  the  commencement 
of  the  Revolution,  who  espoused  the  cause  of  the  colonists,  and 
retained  his  office.  When  the  Adams's  and  Hancock  were  in  Con 
gress,  Trumbull  was  the  acknowledged  whig  leader  in  New  Eng 
land  ;  and  during  the  whole  contest,  Washington  relied  on  him  as 
one  of  the  main  pillars  of  support. 

Governor  Trumbull  was  now  sixty-five  years  of  age,  and  full  of 
the  pious  and  patriotic  zeal  of  the  stanch  Scotch  covenanters.  His 
mind  was  moulded  in  the  quaint  form  of  the  old  Puritans,  and  its 
expressions  bore  that  aspect;  and  over  his  every-day  life,  a  deep 
religious  spirit  cast  its  beautiful  light.*  With  that  spirit,  mingled 
with  patriotic  feeling,  his  letter  to  Washington,  written  at  Lebanon 
on  the  thirteenth  of  July,  was  filled.  "  Suffer  me,"  he  said,  "  to  join 
in  congratulating  you,  on  your  appointment  to  be  general  and 
commander-in-chief  of  the  troops  raised,  or  to  be  raised,  for  the 

*  The  Marquis  dc  Chastellux,  who  came  to  America  with  Rochambcau,  in  1780,  has  left  on 
record  a  pleasant  allusion  to  the  religious  habits  of  Governor  Trumbull.  "I  have  already  painted 
Governor  Trumbull,"  he  says  (Travels,  vol.  i.,  p.  458).  "At  present  you  have  only  to  represent  to 
yourself  this  little  old  man,  in  the  antique  dress  of  the  first  settlers  in  this  colony,  approaching  a 
table  surrounded  by  twenty  huzzar  officers,  and,  without  either  disconcerting  himself  or  losing  any 
thing  of  his  formal  stiffness,  pronouncing,  in  a  loud  voice,  a  long  prayer  in  the  form  of  a  benedicite. 
Let  it  not  be  imagined  that  he  excites  the  laughter  of  his  auditors  ;  they  are  too  well  trained.  You 
must,  on  the  contrary,  figure  to  yourself  twenty  Amens,  issuing  at  once  from  the  midst  of  forty 
mustaches,  and  you  will  have  some  idea  of  the  little  scene."  The  "  twenty  huzzar  officers"  alluded 
to,  were  of  the  Due  de  Lnuzun's  corps  of  cavalry,  who  were  cantoned  at  Lebanon  in  the  winter  of 
1780-'81.  These  officers  were  frequent  guests  at  the  table  of  Governor  Trumbull. 


Mi\  43.]  GOVERNOR  TRUMBULL  S  LETTER.  509 

defence  of  American  liberty.  Men  who  have  tasted  freedom,  and 
who  have  felt  their  personal  rights,  are  not  easy  taught  to  bear 
with  encroachments  on  either,  or  brought  to  submit  to  oppression. 
Virtue  ought  always  to  be  made  the  object  of  government.  Justice 
is  firm  and  permanent."  Then  referring  to  the  causes  of  difficulty, 
he  continued : — 

"  The  honorable  Congress  have  proclaimed  a  fast  to  be  observed 
by  the  inhabitants  of  all  the  English  colonies  on  this  continent,  to 
stand  before  the  Lord  in  one  day,  with  public  humiliation,  fasting, 
and  prayer,  to  deplore  our  many  sins,  to  offer  up  our  joint  suppli 
cations  to  God  for  forgiveness,  and  for  his  merciful  interposition  for 
us  in  this  day  of  unnatural  darkness  and  distress.  They  have,  w7ith 
one  united  voice,  appointed  you  to  the  high  station  you  possess. 
The  Supreme  Director  of  all  events  hath  caused  a  wonderful  union 
of  hearts  and  counsels  to  subsist  among  us. 

"  Now,  therefore,  be  strong  and  very  courageous.  May  the 
armies  of  the  God  of  Israel  shower  down  the  blessings  of  his 
Divine  Providence  on  you,  give  you  wisdom  and  fortitude,  cover 
your  head  in  the  day  of  battle  and  danger,  add  success,  convince 
our  enemies  of  their  mistaken  measures,  and  that  all  their  attempts 
to  deprive  these  colonies  of  their  inestimable  constitutional  rights 
and  liberties  are  injurious  and  vain." 

To  this  feeling  letter  Washington  replied,  on  the  eighteenth, 
expressing  his  sincere  thanks,  and  adding:  "As  the  cause  of  our 
common  country  calls  us  both  to  an  active  and  dangerous  duty,  I 
trust  that  Divine  Providence  which  wisely  orders  the  affairs  of  men, 
will  eruible  us  to  discharge  it  with  fidelity  and  success." 

Let  us  now  turn  for  a  moment  from  the  camp,  and  observe  what 
was  doing  in  the  supreme  council  of  the  nation. 


600  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   LIT. 

CAUTION  OF  CONGRESS DECLARATION  OF    THE    CAUSES    AND    NECESSITY    OF    WAK 

LETTER    TO    THE    MAYOR    AND    LIVERY    OF     LONDON PROCEEDINGS    IN    THAT 

CITY PETITION     TO    THE     KING OPPOSITION     TO     THAT     MEASURE ADDRESS 

TO  THE  INHABITANTS  OF  GREAT  BRITAIN MEASURES  CONCERNING    THE  INDIANS 

FAST  DAY  PROCEEDINGS DILIGENCE  OF  CONGRESS ADDRESS  TO  THE  AS 
SEMBLY  OF  JAMAICA,  AND  TO  THE  PEOPLE  OF  IRELAND THE  LAST  APPEALS 

EXCITEMENT  IN  ENGLAND POSTOFFICE  SYSTEM  AND  GENERAL  HOSPITAL  ESTAB 
LISHED TREASON  OF  DOCTOR  CHURCH FINANCIAL  PROVISIONS ADJOURN 
MENT  OF  CONGRESS. 

WHILE  Washington  was  anxiously  preparing  men  and  means 
to  carry  on  the  siege  of  Boston,  the  continental  Congress  were 
working  nobly  in  the  general  cause,  and  in  the  adoption  of  meas 
ures  to  strengthen  his  hands.  At  the  same  time  they  proceeded 
with  caution  in  the  pathway  of  rebellion,  and  while  they  firmly 
declared  their  rights  and  intentions,  they  warmly  expressed  their 
loyalty  to  their  sovereign.  The  Congress  and  the  commander-in- 
chief  scrupulously  avoided  calling  the  British  army  in  Boston  the 
"royal  troops,"  but  denominated  them  "ministerial  troops;"  and  in 
every  declaration  and  act,  they  held  the  ministry  and  Parliament 
alone  responsible  for  the  measures  which  had  driven  the  Americans 
into  rebellion. 

On  the  sixth  of  July,  Congress  adopted  a  declaration,  which  set 
forth  the  causes  and  the  necessity  of  the  armed  resistance  of  the 
colonies.  A  declaration  of  this  kind,  drawn  by  John  Rutledge,  had 
been  reported  by  a  committee  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  June.  It 
was  not  approved,  and  on  the  twenty-sixth  it  was  recommitted,  and 
Thomas  Jefferson  (who  had  taken  his  seat  in  Congress  five  days 
previously)  and  John  Dickinson  were  added  to  the  committee. 
Mr.  Jefferson  prepared  a  draught  of  a  declaration  which  "was  too 


JET.  43.]  DICKINSON'S  SCRUPLES.  601 

strong  for  Mr.  Dickinson."  That  gentleman  still  retained  a  hope 
of,  and  desire  for,  a  reconciliation  with  the  mother-country,  and  he 
wished  to  lessen  the  offensiveness  of  some  of  its  statements.  "  He 
was  so  honest  a  man,  and  so  able  a  one,"  says  Mr.  Jefferson,*  "  that 
he  was  greatly  indulged  even  by  those  who  could  not  feel  his 
scruples."  He  was,  therefore,  requested  to  take  the  paper  and  put 
it  into  a  form  he  could  approve.  He  prepared  a  new  one,  pre 
serving  of  the  former  only  a  few  of  the  last  paragraphs.  This 
draft  by  Mr.  Dickinson  was  the  one  substantially  adopted  by  the 
Congress,  and  is  clear  and  explicit  in  the  expression  of  the  senti 
ments  of  the  representatives  of  the  American  people. 

"  A  reverence  for  our  great  Creator,  principles  of  humanity,  and 
the  dictates  of  common  sense,"  they  said,  "  must  convince  all  those 
who  reflect  upon  the  subject,  that  government  was  instituted  to 
promote  the  welfare  of  mankind,  and  ought  to  be  administered  for 
the  attainment  of  that  end." — "The  legislature  of  Britain,  how 
ever,"  they  continued,  "  stimulated  by  an  inordinate  passion  for  a 
power  not  only  unjustifiable,  but  which  they  know  to  be  peculiarly 
reprobated  by  the  very  constitution  of  that  kingdom,  and  desperate 
of  success  in  any  mode  of  contest  where  regard  should  be  had  to 
truth,  law,  or  right,  have  at  length,  deserting  those,  attempted  to 
effect  their  cruel  and  impolitic  purpose  of  enslaving  these  colonies 
by  violence,  and  have  thereby  rendered  it  necessary  for  us  to  close 
with  their  last  appeal  from  reason  to  arms.  Yet,  however  blinded 
that  assembly  may  be,  by  their  intemperate  rage  for  unlimited 
dominion,  so  to  slight  justice  and  the  opinion  of  mankind,  we 
esteem  ourselves  bound  by  obligations  of  respect  to  the  rest  of  the 
world,  to  make  known  the  justice  of  our  cause." 

The  declaration  then  recited  some  of  the  prominent  events  in 
the  earlier  history  of  the  colonies,  and  the  most  notable  of  the 
injuries  which  they  had  recently  sustained  at  the  hands  of  the 
parent  government.  Then  briefly  alluding  to  the  movements  of 
the  people,  and  the  assembling  of  a  Congress  in  the  autumn  of 
1774,  they  said  :  "  We  resolved  again  to  offer  an  humble  and  dutiful 

*  Memoirs,  i.,  10.     London  edition. 


602  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

petition  to  the  king,  and  also  addressed  our  fellow-subjects  of  Great 
Britain.  We  have  preserved  every  temperate,  every  respectful 
measure;...  but  subsequent  events  have  shown  how  vain  was  the 
hope  of  finding  moderation  in  our  enemies." 

The  declaration  then  commented  upon  the  speech  of  the  king 
and  the  proceedings  of  Parliament,  after  receiving  the  state-papers 
put  forth  by  the  first  continental  Congress ;  alluded  to  the  fruitless 
attempts  of  members  of  Parliament  and  municipal  bodies  in  Great 
Britain  to  stay  the  hand  of  ministerial  oppression  then  laid  upon 
the  colonies;  recited  the  sad  story  of  Lexington  and  Concord; 
quoted  the  insulting  proclamation  of  Gage  on  the  twelfth  of  June ; 
referred  to  the  battle  of  Bunker's  hill  and  the  burning  of  Charles- 
town,  and  the  efforts  in  progress  to  incite  the  Canadians  and  the 
Indians  to  warfare  against  the  colonists ;  and  then  concluded  with 
the  following  strong  and  unequivocal  language : — 

"  We  are  reduced  to  the  alternative  of  choosing  an  unconditional 
submission  to  the  tyranny  of  irritated  ministers,  or  resistance  by 
force.  The  latter  is  our  choice.  We  have  counted  the  cost  of  this 
contest,  and  find  nothing  so  dreadful  as  voluntary  slavery.  Honor, 
justice,  and  humanity,  forbid  us  tamely  to  surrender  that  freedom 
which  we  received  from  our  gallant  ancestors,  and  which  our  inno 
cent  posterity  have  a  right  to  receive  from  us.  We  can  not  endure 
the  infamy  and  guilt  of  resigning  succeeding  generations  to  that 
wretchedness  which  inevitably  awaits  them,  if  we  basely  entail 
hereditary  bondage  upon  them. 

"  Our  cause  is  just.  Our  union  is  perfect.  Our  internal  resources 
are  great,  and,  if  necessary,  foreign  assistance  is  undoubtedly  attain 
able.  We  gratefully  acknowledge,  as  signal  instances  of  the  Divine 
favor  toward  us,  that  his  providence  would  not  permit  us  to  be 
called  into  this  severe  controversy  until  we  were  grown  up  to  our 
present  strength,  had  been  previously  exercised  in  warlike  opera 
tions,  and  possessed  of  the  means  of  defending  ourselves.  With 
hearts  fortified  with  these  animating  reflections,  we  most  solemnly, 
before  God  and  the  world,  declare,  that  exerting  the  utmost  energy 
of  those  powers  which  our  beneficent  Creator  hath  graciously  be- 


JE-r.  43.]  DECLARATION  OF  CONGRESS.  603 

stowed  upon  us,  the  arms  we  have  been  compelled  by  our  enemies 
to  assume,  we  will,  in  defiance  of  every  hazard,  with  unabating 
firmness  and  perseverance,  employ  for  the  preservation  of  our 
liberties ;  being  with  one  mind  resolved  to  die  freemen  rather  than 
to  live  slaves. 

"  Lest  this  declaration  should  disquiet  the  minds  of  our  friends 
and  fellow-subjects  in  any  part  of  the  empire,  we  assure  them  that 
we  mean  not  to  dissolve  that  union  which  has  so  long  and  so  hap 
pily  subsisted  between  us,  and  wrhich  we  sincerely  wish  to  see 
restored.  Necessity  has  not  yet  driven  us  into  that  desperate 
measure,  or  induced  us  to  excite  any  other  nation  to  war  against 
them.  We  have  not  raised  armies  with  ambitious  designs  of  sepa 
rating  from  Great  Britain,  and  establishing  independent  states. 
We  fight  not  for  glory  or  for  conquest.  We  exhibit  to  mankind 
the  remarkable  spectacle  of  a  people  attacked  by  unprovoked 
enemies,  without  any  imputation  or  even  suspicion  of  offence. 
They  boast  of  their  privileges  and  civilization,  and  yet  proffer  no 
milder  conditions  than  servitude  or  death. 

"  In  our  own  native  land,  in  defence  of  the  freedom  that  is  our 
birthright,  and  which  we  ever  enjoyed  till  the  late  violation  of  it ; 
for  the  protection  of  our  property,  acquired  solely  by  the  honest 
industry  of  our  forefathers  and  ourselves,  against  violence  actually 
offered  we  have  taken  up  arms.  We  shall  lay  them  down  when 
hostilities  shall  cease  on  the  part  of  the  aggressors,  and  all  danger 
of  their  being  renewed  shall  be  removed,  and  not  before.  With  an 
humble  confidence  in  the  mercies  of  the  supreme  and  impartial 
Judge  and  Ruler  of  the  Universe,  we  most  devoutly  implore  his 
divine  goodness  to  protect  us  happily  through  this  great  conflict,  to 
dispose  our  adversaries  to  reconciliation  on  reasonable  terms,  and 
thereby  to  relieve  the  empire  from  the  calamities  of  civil  war."* 

When  this  declaration  was  adopted,  Congress  resolved  that  a 
letter  should  be  prepared  to  the  lord-mayor,  aldermen,  and  livery 
of  the  city  of  London,  expressive  of  the  thanks  of  Congress  for 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  134,  FolwelFs  edition,  1800.  These  concluding  paragraphs  of  the 
declaration  were  written  by  Mr.  Jefferson.  See  his  "  Memoirs,"  i.,  10. 


604  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

their  opposition  to  the  colonial  policy  of  the  government.  The 
celebrated  John  Wilkes,*  who,  a  few  years  before,  had  given  the 
government  much  trouble,  was  then  lord-mayor,  and  had  presented 
a  bold  and  even  violent  address  and  remonstrance  of  the  livery  of 
London  to  the  king,  in  which  they  complained,  that  they  "  plainly 
perceived  a  real  design  to  establish  arbitrary  power  over  all  Amer 
ica,  and  to  uproot  the  constitution  at  home."  It  was  written  by 
Arthur  Lee,  of  Virginia,  who  who  was  then  a  distinguished  advo 
cate  in  the  British  metropolis,  and  attracted  a  great  deal  of  admira 
tion  for  the  elegance  and  vigor  of  its  style.  The  king  was  offended  ; 
and  in  his  reply,  he  expressed  his  astonishment  that  any  of  his 
subjects  should  encourage  the  Americans  in  rebellion,  and  his  firm 
determination  to  rely  on  the  wisdom  of  Parliament,  and  steadily 
pursue  such  measures  as  they  recommended. 

A  few  days  after  this,  Wilkes  was  informed  that  the  king  would 
not  receive,  on  the  throne,  any  address  of  the  lord-mayor  and  alder 
men,  but  in  their  corporate  capacity.  This  was  construed  into  a 
fresh  wrong,  and  Wilkes  raised  a  violent  storm  by  writing  and 
publishing  a  severe  letter  in  vindication  of  the  right  of  the  city 
to  petition  the  throne  in  their  own  way ;  a  right,  he  said,  which 
had  been  respected,  "  even  by  the  accursed  race  of  Stuarts."  The 
king  steadily  refused  compliance,  but  agreed  to  receive  an  address 
at  a  levee.  The  authorities  of  London  demanded  that  he  should 
receive  it,  sitting  on  the  throne,  and  when  he  refused  to  do  so,  a 
remonstrance  was  printed  in  the  newspapers,  and  a  call  was  loudly 
made  for  "  the  impeachment  of  the  evil  counsellors  who  had  planted 
popery  and  arbitrary  power  in  America,  and  were  the  advisers  of  a 
measure  so  dangerous  to  his  majesty  and  his  people  as  that  of 
refusing  to  hear  petitions."  These  proceedings  had  a  great  effect, 

*  John  Wilkes  was  a  fearless  political  writer.  He  was  born  in  1727,  and  became  a  member  of 
Parliament  at  the  age  of  thirty  years.  He  edited  a  paper  called  "  The  North  Briton  ;"  and  because 
of  an  article  in  it  which  reflected  upon  the  government,  he  was  sent  to  the  Tower  in  1763.  On 
account  of  a  licentious  "  Essay  on  Woman,"  he  was  afterward  expelled  from  the  house  of  commons. 
After  giving  the  ministers  much  trouble,  he  was  elected  sheriff  of  London  in  1771.  In  1774  he  was 
elected  lord-mayor,  and  took  his  seat  in  Parliament  as  a  representative  of  the  metropolitan  county 
of  Middlesex.  *He  was  appointed  chamberlain  of  London  in  1779,  and  died  at  his  seat  in  the  Isle 
of  Wight  in  1797,  at  the  age  of  seventy  years.  He  was  licentious  in  private  life,  but  his  talents  and 
republican  proclivities  made  him  the  idol  of  the  people. 


J£T.  43.]  PETITION  TO  THE  KING.  (J05 

and  sympathy  for  the  struggling  Americans  was  prevalent  through 
out  England.  It  is  a  singular  fact  that  the  letter  of  thanks  to  the 
lord-mayor  and  livery  of  London,  ordered  by  Congress  because  of 
their  proceedings,  was  written  by  Richard  Henry  Lee,  brother  of 
Arthur  Lee. 

On  the  eighth  of  July,  a  petition  to  the  king,  proposed  and 
written  by  John  Dickinson,  of  Pennsylvania,  was  adopted  by  Con 
gress.  It  had  been  debated  for  some  time,  and  quite  a  large 
majority  of  the  members  of  that  body  were  opposed  to  the  meas 
ure,  as  useless  and  injurious.  The  New  England  members,  led  by 
John  Adams,  were  specially  vehement  in  their  opposition ;  and  the 
debate  thereon  was  the  beginning  of  a  long-continued  coldness 
between  Mr.  Adams  and  Mr.  Dickinson.  Mr.  Jefferson,  in  speaking 
of  the  matter  said :  "  Congress  gave  a  signal  proof  of  their  indul 
gence  of  Mr.  Dickinson,  and  of  their  great  desire  not  to  go  too  fast 
for  any  respectable  part  of  our  body,  in  permitting*  him  to  draw 
their  second  petition  to  the  king  according  to  his  own  ideas,  and 
passing  it  with  scarcely  any  amendment."*  The  document  was 
ably  drawn ;  but  the  disgust  against  its  humility  was  general,  and 
some  of  the  members  signed  it  with  great  reluctance.^  It  declared 
themselves  dutiful  subjects,  and  prayed  that  his  royal  magnanimity 
and  benevolence  might  be  interposed  to  direct  some  mode  by  which 
the  united  applications  of  his  faithful  colonists  might  be  improved 
into  a  happy  and  permanent  reconciliation.  "  Notwithstanding  our 
sufferings,"  they  said,  "  our  breasts  retain  too  tender  a  regard  for 

*  Memoirs,  i.,  10. 

t  Although  Doctor  Franklin  was  convinced  that  reconciliation  with  Great  Britain,  on  any  terms 
except  those  of  entire  submission,  was  out  of  the  question,  he  signed  the  petition,  considering  it  a 
harmless  thing.  His  letters  at  that  time  show  how  surely  he  expected  war,  and  that  the  breach 
between  Great  Britain  and  her  colonists  would  remain  unclosed.  Three  days  before  the  adoption 
of  the  petition,  he  wrote  the  following  remarkable  letter  to  Mr.  Strahan,  an  eminent  printer  in 
London:  "You  are  a  member  of  Parliament,  and  one  of  that  majority  which  has  doomed  my 
country  to  destruction.  You  have  begun  to  burn  our  towns,  and  murder  our  people.  Look  upon 
your  hands,  they  are  stained  with  the  blood  of  your  relations  !  You  and  I  were  long  friends  ;  you 
are  now  my  enemy,  and  I  am  yours,  BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN."  To  Doctor  Priestley,  Franklin  wrote, 
on  the  seventh,  after  referring  to  the  bloody  events  in  the  vicinity  of  Boston  :  "  Great  frugality  and 
industry  are  now  become  fashionable  here.  Gentlemen  who  used  to  entertain  with  two  or  three 
courses,  pride  themselves  now  in  treating  with  simple  beef  and  pudding.  By  these  means,  and  the 
stoppage  of  our  consumptive  trade  with  Great  Britain,  we  shall  be  better  able  to  pay  our  voluntary 
taxes  for  the  support  of  our  troops.  Our  savings  in  the  article  of  trade  amount  to  near  five  millions 
sterling,  per  annum." — Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Franklin,  viii.,  155. 


606  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  kingdom  from  which  we  derive  our  origin,  to  request  such  a 
reconciliation  as  might,  in  any  manner,  be  inconsistent  with  her 
dignity  or  her  welfare." 

Mr.  Dickinson  was  so  pleased  with  the  adoption  of  the  petition, 
that,  after  the  vote  had  been  taken,  and  further  observation  upon 
it  was  out  of  order,  he  could  not  refrain  from  rising  and  expressing 
his  satisfaction.  He  concluded  by  saying:  "there's  but  one  word, 
Mr.  President,  in  the  paper  which  I  disapprove,  and  that  is  the 
word  Congress."  Benjamin  Harrison  immediately  arose  and  said: 
"  There  is  but  one  word  in  the  paper,  Mr.  President,  of  which  I 
approve,  and  that  is  the  word  Congress" 

It  was  resolved  that  this  petition,  if  unsuccessful,  should  be  the 
last ;  and  to  give  solemnity  and  force  to  its  presentation,  the  per 
formance  of  that  act  was  intrusted  to  the  hand  of  Richard  Penn, 
one  of  the  proprietaries  of  the  province  of  Pennsylvania  in  which 
the  Congress  were  assembled,  in  conjunction  with  the  colonial 
agents  in  England.  On  the  same  day  when  this  matter  was  dis 
posed  of  (the  eighth  of  July),  Congress  adopted  an  address  of  the 
delegates  to  the  inhabitants  of  Great  Britain,  which  had  been  pre 
pared  by  Richard  Henry  Lee.  It  was  debated  by  paragraphs,  and 
adopted  substantially  as  it  was  reported.  It  was  one  of  the  ablest 
documents  that  had  been  sent  forth  by  the  continental  Congress, 
full  of  eloquent  expostulations,  significant  warnings,  and  dignified 
reproaches.  They  addressed  them  as  "  FRIENDS,  COUNTRYMEN,  AND 
BRETHREN,"  and  said — "By  these,  and  every  other  appellation  that 
may  designate  the  ties  which  bind  us  to  each  other,  we  entreat 
your  serious  attention  to  this  our  second  attempt  to  prevent  their 
dissolution."  They  then  referred  to  former  friendships,  to  mutual 
action  in  the  field,  and  the  ties  that  had  been  broken.  They  re 
cited  past  .grievances,  and  the  supineness  of  the  people  of  Great 
Britain  in  relation  to  the  wrongs  inflicted  upon  America — wrongs 
that  essentially  wounded  them  also.  After  this  recitation  they 
asked : — 

"  To  what  are  we  to  attribute  this  treatment  ?  If  to  any  secret 
principle  of  the  constitution,"  they  said,  "  let  it  be  mentioned ;  let 


M-r.  43.]  APPEAL  TO  THE  BRITISH  PEOPLE.  607 

us  learn  that  the  government  we  have  long  revered  is  not  without 
its  defects,  and  that  while  it  gives  freedom  to  a  part,  it  necessarily 
enslaves  the  remainder  of  the  empire.  If  such  a  principle  exists, 
why,  for  ages,  has  it  ceased  to  operate  ?  Why,  at  this  time,  is  it 
called  into  action  ?  Can  no  reason  be  assigned  for  this  conduct  ? 
Or  must  it  be  resolved  into  the  wanton  exercise  of  arbitrary  power? 
And  shall  the  descendants  of  Britons  tamely  submit  to  this  ?  No, 
sirs !  we  never  will,  while  we  revere  the  memory  of  our  gallant 
and  virtuous  ancestors,  we  never  can  surrender  those  glorious  privi 
leges  for  which  they  fought,  bled,  and  conquered.  Admit  that  your 
fleets  could  destroy  our  towns,  and  ravage  our  seacoasts ;  these  are 
inconsiderable  objects,  things  of  no  moment  to  men  whose  bosoms 
glow  with  the  ardor  of  liberty.  We  can  retire  beyond  the  reach 
of  your  navy,  and,  without  any  sensible  diminution  of  the  neces 
saries  of  life,  enjoy  a  luxury,  which  from  that  period  you  will  want 
—  the  luxury  of  being  free." 

"  We  are  accused  of  aiming  at  independence,"  they  continued ; 
"  but  how  is  this  accusation  supported  ?  By  the  allegations  of  your 
ministers,  not  by  our  actions.  Abused,  insulted,  and  contemned, 
what  steps  have  we  pursued  to  obtain  redress  ?  We  have  carried 
our  dutiful  petitions  to  the  throne.  We  have  applied  to  your 
justice  for  relief.  We  have  retrenched  our  luxury,  and  withheld 
our  trade....  What  has  been  the  success  of  our  endeavors?  The 
clemency  of  our  sovereign  is  unhappily  diverted ;  our  petitions  are 
treated  with  indignity ;  our  prayers  answered  by  insults.  Our 
application  to  you  remains  unnoticed,  and  leaves  us  the  melancholy 
apprehension  of  your  wanting  either  the  will,  or  the  power,  to 
assist  us." 

After  speaking  of  the  ungracious  manner  in  which  their  last 
petition  to  the  king  had  been  received,  they  said :  "  We  have, 
nevertheless,  again  presented  an  humble  and  dutiful  petition  to  our 
sovereign ;  and  to  remove  every  imputation  of  obstinacy,  have 
requested  his  majesty  to  direct  some  mode  by  which  the  united 
applications  of  his  faithful  colonists  may  be  improved  into  happy 
and  permanent  reconciliation.  We  are  willing  to  treat  on  such 


603  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

terms  as  can  alone  render  our  accommodation  lasting,  and  we  flatter 
ourselves  that  our  pacific  endeavors  will  be  attended  with  a  removal 
of  ministerial  troops,  and  a  repeal  of  those  laws,  of  the  operation 
of  which  we  complain,  on  the  one  part,  and  a  disbanding  of  our 
army,  and  a  dissolution  of  our  commercial  associations  on  the 
other. 

"  Yet  conclude  not  from  this  that  we  propose  to  surrender  our 
property  into  the  hands  of  your  ministry,  or  vest  your  Parliament 
with  a  power  which  may  terminate  in  our  destruction.  The  great 
bulwarks  of  our  constitution  we  have  desired  to  maintain  by  every 
temperate,  by  every  peaceable  means;  but  your  ministers  (equal 
foes  to  British  and  American  freedom),  have  added  to  their  former 
oppressions  an  attempt  to  reduce  us,  by  the  sword,  to  a  base  and 
abject  submission.  On  the  sword,  therefore,  we  are  compelled  to 
rely  for  protection.  Should  victory  declare  in  your  favor,  yet  men 
trained  to  arms  from  their  infancy,  and  animated  by  the  love  of 
liberty,  will  afford  neither  a  cheap  nor  easy  conquest.  Of  this,  at 
least,  we  are  assured,  that  our  struggle  will  be  glorious,  our  success 
certain ;  since  even  in  death  we  shall  find  that  freedom  which  in 
life  you  forbid  us  to  enjoy." 

Anxious  to  preserve  the  friendship  of  the  Indians,  Congress  had 
taken  measures  early  to  gain  that  desirable  end.  A  committee 
on  Indian  affairs  was  appointed,  and  on  the  twelfth  of  July  it 
reported,  that  as  the  British  government  was  undoubtedly  exciting 
the  savages  to  take  up  arms  against  the  Americans,  it  was  very 
important  for  the  Congress  to  make  every  possible  effort  to 
strengthen  and  confirm  the  friendship  of  the  Indians  for  the  col 
onists.  It  proposed  the  establishment  of  a  board  of  commis 
sioners  for  the  superintendence  of  Indians  affairs,  their  jurisdiction 
to  be  divided  into  Northern,  Southern,  and  Middle  departments; 
the  first  for  the  Six  Nations  and  other  northern  tribes,  the  second 
for  the  Cherokees,  and  the  third  for  the  intervening  nations  on  the 
borders  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia.  Already  some  Stockbridge 
Indians,  from  western  Massachusetts,  were  in  the  camp  at  Boston ; 
and  Samuel  Kirtland,  the  zealous  missionary  among  the  Six  Nations, 


MT.  43.]  A  NATIONAL  FAST.  609 

of  New  York,  was  making  friendly  overtures  to  the  Oneidas  and 
Mohawks.  Accordingly,  on  the  twenty-sixth,  a  committee  ap 
pointed  to  "  prepare  proper  talks  to  the  Indians,"  reported  a  speech 
to  the  Six  Nations,  in  which,  with  simple  language,  the  nature  of 
the  pending  quarrel  was  set  forth,  and  their  friendship  was  affection 
ately  invoked.  Similar  "  talks"  were  prepared  for  other  tribes ;  and 
in  accordance  with  the  recommendations  of  the  first-named  report, 
commissioners  for  the  several  Indian  departments  were  appointed. 
The  duties  of  these  commissioners  were  very  delicate  and  impor 
tant,  as  our  subsequent  record  will  show. 

The  twentieth  of  July  being  the  day  appointed  by  Congress  for 
a  national  fast,  and  acts  of  religious  worship,  that  body  adjourned 
immediately  after  assembling  in  the  morning  of  that  day,  and 
attended  divine  service  at  Christ  church.  The  Reverend  Jacob 
Duche,  who,  on  the  seventh  of  the  month,  had  preached  from  the 
same  pulpit  a  powerful  sermon  before  the  "  First  Battalion  of  the 
City  and  Liberties  of  Philadelphia,"  on  the  "Duty  of  standing  fast 
in  our  Spiritual  and  Temporal  Liberties,"  now  delivered  a  most 
impressive  discourse.*  It  was  a  clear,  cool  morning  for  the  season, 
and  most  of  the  churches  and  meetinghouses  in  the  city  were  filled 
with  worshippers.  "  All  the  houses  and  shops  in  our  neighborhood 
were  shut,"  wrote  a  contemporary  patriot;  "and  to  appearance 
more  still  than  a  First-Day  produced,  as  there  was  no  riding  abroad 
visiting,  as  is  generally  on  First-Day."f  But  the  members  of  Con 
gress  did  not  make  the  occasion  an  excuse  for  neglect  of  legislative 
duties.  They  reassembled  at  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when 

*  This  discourse  was  founded  upon  the  fourteenth  verse  of  the  eightieth  Psalm,  and  when  pub 
lished  afterward,  it  was  entitled  "  The  American  Vine."  It  was  printed  the  same  year.  A  copy 
of  it  is  in  the  Loganian  library,  Philadelphia. — See  Dorr's  "History  of  Christ  Church/'  page  176. 
Marshall,  in  his  diary,  alluding  to  this  discourse,  says  :  "  It  was  an  excellent  sermon,"  and  adds, 
"it  was  an  awful  meeting,  as  numbers  of  wet  eyes  demonstrated  their  attention."  A  copy  of  the 
earlier  sermon,  above  alluded  to,  is  in  my  possession.  Next  to  the  concluding  paragraph,  the 
preacher  said :  "  In  a  word,  my  brethren,  though  the  worst  should  come  —  though  we  should  be 
deprived  of  all  the  conveniences  and  elegances  of  life,  though  we  should  be  cut  off  from  all  our 
usual  sources  of  commerce,  and  constrained,  as  many  of  our  poor  brethren  have  already  been,  to 
abandon  our  present  comfortable  habitations,  let  us,  nevertheless,  '  STAND  FAST/  as  the  guardians 
of  LIBERTY. "  These  noble  words  are  in  strange  contrast  with  the  acts  of  the  preacher  the  follow 
ing  year,  when  he  timidly  cowered  before  the  frowns  of  the  bishop  of  London,  joined  the  tory  party 
and  fled  to  England. 

t  Marshall's  Diary. 

39 


610  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

an  important  despatch  from  General  Schuyler,  in  relation  to  affairs 
in  the  Northern  department,*  which  had  been  received  in  the 
morning,  was  read  and  acted  upon,  the  result  of  which,  was  a  reso 
lution  empowering  that  officer  to  "dispose^ of  and  employ  all  the 
troops  in  the  New  York  department,"  as  he  might  think  best  for 
the  general  good. 

On  the  twenty-fifth,  an  address  to  the  assembly  of  Jamaica, 
whence  the  colonies  had  received  sympathizing  words,  was  adopted; 
and  three  days  afterward,  another  to  the  people  of  Ireland,  was 
agreed  to.  These  were  the  last  addresses  to  the  inhabitants  of  any 
portion  of  the  British  realm,  put  forth  by  the  Congress ;  and  the 
petition  to  the  king  was  their  final  appeal  to  the  justice,  humanity, 
and  magnanimity  of  his  majesty.  Thenceforth  they  employed 
vigorous  actions  instead  of  friendly  words ;  and  by  their  own  wis 
dom  and  strength,  given  them  by  the  Great  Disposer,  they  wrought 
out  for  themselves  a  government  founded  upon  truth  and  justice, 
deeply  laid  in  the  hearts  of  a  free  people. 

On  the  thirty-first,  the  Congress  took  into  consideration  the 
following  conciliatory  resolution  of  the  house  of  commons,  which 
had  been  adopted  in  February : — 

"  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee,  that  when  the  general 
council  and  assembly,  or  general  court  of  any  his  majesty's  prov 
inces,  or  colonies  in  America,  shall  propose  to  make  provision, 
according  to  the  condition,  circumstance,  or  situation  of  such  prov 
ince  or  colony,  for  contributing  their  proportion  to  the  common 
defence  (such  proportion  to  be  raised  under  the  authority  of  the 
general  court,  or  general  assembly  of  such  province  or  colony,  and 
disposable  by  Parliament),  and  shall  engage  to  make  provision,  also, 
for  the  support  of  the  civil  government,  and  the  administration  of 
justice  in  such  province  or  colony,  it  will  be  proper  if  such  proposal 
shall  be  approved  by  his  majesty  and  the  two  houses  of  Parliament, 
and  for  so  long  as  such  provision  shall  be  made  accordingly,  to 
forbear  in  respect  of  such  province  or  colony  to  lay  any  duty,  tax, 

*  This  letter  was  dated  "  Saratoga,  July  15,"  and  gave  alarming  intelligence  from  Tryon  county, 
where  the  Johnsons  were  inciting  the  tories  and  Indians  against  the  whig  inhabitants. 


CONCILIATORY  PROPOSITION  REJECTED.  611 

or  assessment,  or  to  impose  any  further  duty,  tax,  or  assessment, 
except  only  such  duties  as  it  may  be  expedient  to  continue  to  levy 
or  impose  for  the  regulation  of  commerce ;  the  net  produce,  or  the 
duties  last  mentioned,  to  be  carried  to  the  account  of  such  province 
or  colony  respectively." 

Lord  North  had  sent  this  resolve  to  the  several  colonies.  Some 
of  them  promptly  condemned  it,  and  others  referred  it  to  the  con 
tinental  Congress.  That  body,  after  due  consideration,  declared: 
"  We  are  of  opinion  that  the  proposition  is  unreasonable  and  in 
sidious  :  unreasonable,  because,  if  we  declare  we  accede  to  it,  we 
declare,  without  reservation,  we  will  purchase  the  favor  of  Parlia 
ment,  not  knowing,  at  the  same  time,  at  what  price  they  will  please 
to  estimate  their  favor ;  it  is  insidious,  because  individual  colonies, 
having  bid  and  bidden  again,  till  they  find  the  avidity  of  the  seller 
too  great  for  all  their  powers  to  satisfy,  are  then  to  return  into 
opposition,  divided  from  their  sister-colonies  whom  the  minister  will 
have  previously  detached  by  a  grant  of  easier  terms,  or  by  an  artful 
procrastination  of  a  definitive  answer."  The  proposition  was  then 
unanimously  rejected. 

The  people  were  again  taught  the  lesson  which  they  had  al 
ready  too  often  received,  that  their  petitions  and  remonstrances 
were  vain.  The  king  was  persuaded  that  the  petition  of  the  colo 
nists  was  insincere,  and  intended  as  an  insulting  mockery;  and 
Governor  Penn  was  informed  by  Lord  Dartmouth,  that  no  answer 
to  it  would  be  given.  This  decision  raised  a  loud  cry  against  the 
government  in  the  city  of  London  and  elsewhere.  Already  a  proc 
lamation  of  the  king  for  suppressing  rebellion  and  preventing 
seditious  correspondences,  had  been  treated  with  contempt.  Mayor 
Wilkes  had  refused  to  have  it  read,  pursuant  to  orders,  in  the  usual 
dignified  way ;  and  when,  in  an  obscure  place,  the  reading  of  it  was 
concluded  by  an  inferior  civil  officer,  the  populace  expressed  their 
indignation  by  "  a  terrible  hiss."*  Now,  perceiving  the  contempt 
with  which  the  humble  appeal  of  the  Americans  was  received  by 
his  majesty,  another  address,  petition,  and  memorial,  signed  by 

*  Annual  Register. 


612  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

more  than  eleven  hundred  "gentlemen-merchants  and  traders  of 
London/'  was  presented  to  King  George.  That  paper  contained 
some  bold  expressions,  startling  truths,  and  alarming  suggestions. 
It  spoke  in  unequivocal  terms  of  the  wickedness  of  the  ministry ; 
revealed  the  fact  that  they  had  advised  the  king  to  hire  German 
soldiers  to  go  over  and  butcher  his  subjects  in  America;  and 
charged  them  with  the  intention  of  raising  and  disciplining  papists 
in  Ireland  and  Canada,  to  wage  a  war,  on  religious  grounds,  against 
the  best  subjects  of  the  crown  beyond  the  Atlantic.  It  suggested 
the  fearful  blow  which  such  measures  would  inflict  upon  the  liberties 
of  England,  and  warned  the  king  of  the  danger  that  threatened  his 
crown.  These  warnings  were  vain.  Counter-addresses,  numerously 
signed,  were  procured ;  and  while  one  party  denounced  the  govern 
ment  as  tyrannous  and  cruel,  the  other  party  denounced  the  Amer 
icans  as  rebellious  and  turbulent.  The  wildest  excitement  in  the 
metropolis  ensued;  and  during  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1775, 
the  public  mind  brooding  over  the  chances  and  consequences  of 
civil  war  in  the  parent-land,  was  as  much  agitated  as  it  was  in  the 
colonies  where  war  actually  existed.  This  agitation  alarmed  the 
king  and  disturbed  the  ministry,  for  it  was  at  their  very  doors ;  and 
the  Parliament  was  assembled  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  October, 
about  a  month  earlier  than  usual.  Of  the  proceedings  of  that 
session  in  relation  to  American  affairs,  we  shall  make  note  here 
after. 

The  Congress,  meanwhile,  were  assiduous  in  their  efforts  to  estab 
lish  a  symmetrical  civil  government  and  to  make  provision  for  the 
army.  A  postal  system  was  agreed  to,  which  should  extend  from 
"Falmouth,  in  New  England,  to  Savannah,  in  Georgia,"  with  as 
many  cross-posts  as  the  postmaster-general  might  think  necessary. 
Doctor  Franklin  was  placed  at  the  head  of  this  important  depart 
ment,*  An  army  hospital,  for  the  accommodation  of  twenty  thou 
sand  men,  was  established,  and  Doctor  Benjamin  Church,  of  Boston, 

*  The  book  in  which  Doctor  Franklin  kept  his  postoffice  accounts  is  preserved  in  the  department 
at  Washington  city.  It  is  a  common,  half-bound  folio,  of  three  quires  of  coarse  paper,  and  contains 
all  the  entries  for  more  than  twenty  months. 


jE-r.  43.]  THE  FIRST  TRAITOR.  613 

who  became  the  first  traitor  to  the  American  cause,*  was  placed  at 
its  head. 

Finally,  after  appointing  a  committee  to  "  make  inquiry  in  all  the 
colonies"  during  the  recess  of  Congress,  "  after  virgin  lead  and 
leaden  ore,  and  the  best  methods  of  collecting,  smelting,  and  re 
fining  it ;"  and  making  provisions  for  a  military-chest,  ordering  five 
hundred  thousand  dollars  to  be  sent  to  Washington  for  the  use  of 
the  army  at  Boston,  and  other  sums  to  other  colonies  for  the  public 
service,  the  Congress  adjourned  to  Tuesday,  the  fifth  of  September 
following. 

*  Doctor  Church  had  been  a  brave  and  zealous  co-worker  with  Warren  and  others,  but  soon  after 
his  appointment  as  surgeon  general,  ho  was  detected  in  carrying  on  a  secret  correspondence  with 
General  Gage.  He  was  tried  by  a  court-martial,  and  found  guilty  of  correspondence  with  the  enemy. 
The  principal  proof  was  a  letter  written  by  him,  in  cipher,  to  the  British  commander,  which  he  had 
intrusted  to  the  hands  of  his  mistress.  She  had  been  arrested  as  a  suspicious  character  and  the  letter 
was  found  upon  her.  She  was  taken  to  headquarters,  the  letter  was  deciphered,  and  the  guilt  of 
Doctor  Church  was  made  manifest  by  her  confession  that  he  was  the  writer.  He  was  expelled  from 
the  general  assembly  of  Massachusetts,  and  confined  in  the  jail  at  Norwich,  Connecticut,  by  the 
general  Congress.  On  account  of  his  failing  health,  he  was  released  and  allowed  to  leave  the 
country.  He  sailed  to  the  British  West  Indies,  but  the  vessel  that  bore  him  was  never  heard  of 
afterward.  His  place  at  the  head  of  the  hospital  was  filled  by  Doctor  John  Morgan,  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  medical  school  in  Philadelphia. 


614  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   LIII. 

THE    WISDOM    OF  CAUTION    IN    CONGRESS WASHINGTON'S    CONSERVATIVE    ACTION 

IN    THE  CAMP ITS  GOOD  EFFECTS THE  UNIVERSAL  CONFIDENCE  IN  WASHING 
TON —  GREENE'S  ADDRESS  —  WASHINGTON'S  SOCIAL  QUALITIES  AND  TEMPERANCE 

HIS    GUESTS THE    DECLARATION    OF    CONGRESS    READ    TO  THE    ARMY FAST 

DAY    OBSERVED    IN    THE     ARMY SKIRMISHES    WITH    THE    ENEMY ARRIVAL    OF 

RIFLEMEN DANIEL  MORGAN ARRANGEMENTS  OF  THE  ARMY DISPOSITION  OF 

THE  BRITISH  FORCES THE  BRITISH  GENERALS DUTIES    LAID  UPON  WASHING 
TON PATRIOTIC  DISTRUST WASHINGTON'S  LABORS APPEAL  TO  WASHINGTON 

FROM  THE  SEABOARD  FOR  PROTECTION JUDICIOUS  REFUSAL. 

LOOKING  back  from  our  stand-point  of  to-day,  the  cautious  pro 
ceedings  of  Congress  in  again  suing  for  justice  at  the  foot  of  the 
throne,  appears  like  an  inexcusably  temporizing  policy  at  a  time 
when  war  actually  existed,  and  the  parent-government  was  putting 
forth  unremitting  efforts  to  crush  the  rebellion  and  enslave  the 
colonists.  No  doubt  that  policy  worked  present  mischief.  No 
doubt  its  delays  were  fatally  effective  in  causing  the  loss  of  Canada, 
a  province  that  might  have  been  easily  wron  by  friendship  or  con 
quest,  in  the  summer  of  1775,  and  in  retarding  the  preparation  of 
the  crude  army  at  Cambridge  immediately  after  the  affair  at  Lex 
ington  and  Concord,  for  efficient  and  speedy  action  against  the 
menacing  enemy,  then  daily  watching  for  a  safe  opportunity  to 
strike  an  effectual  blow.  Yet  it  was  doubtless  a  wise  caution  in 
the  face  of  current  events  and  circumstances.  Rashness  would 
have  been  far  more  destructive  of  the  hopes  of  the  colonists ;  and 
while  wre  may  lament  the  advantages  lost  by  the  hesitancy  of  the 
second  continental  Congress  during  the  earlier  weeks  of  its  first 
session,  in  casting  at  the  feet  of  Britain  the  gauntlet  of  unreserved 
defiance,  we  must  admire  the  wisdom  and  prudence  of  that  body. 
They  were  the  representatives  of  a  people  anxious  to  avoid  hos- 


MT.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  POPULARITY.  615 

tilities,  and  longing  for  honorable  reconciliation ;  and  out  of  the 
consciousness  of  these  known  desires  of  their  constituents,  was  born 
that  conservative  caution  which  the  pen  of  history  is  too  prone  to 
condemn. 

Turning  to  the  headquarters  of  the  army  at  Cambridge,  we  there 
perceive  the  same  caution  prevailing  against  the  fiery  impulses  of 
Lee,  the  restiff  ambition  of  Gates,  the  impatient  ardor  of  the  troops, 
and  the  expostulations  of  members  of  Congress.  Washington  had 
been  taught  its  salutary  lessons  by  experience  and  observation; 
and  during  the  entire  war  he  exercised  this  conservative  care  so 
continually,  that  he  was  frequently  censured  for  his  "  Fabian  slow 
ness."  But  in  every  instance  the  result  fully  vindicated  the  wisdom 
of  his  course.  In  the  camp  before  Boston,  ambitious  subordinates 
frequently  importuned  him  for  leave  to  go  out  upon  military  enter 
prises  where  little  else  than  personal  renown  could  be  won,  but 
these  applications  were  uniformly  met  with  a  negative.  Washing 
ton  was  unwilling  to  have  the  strength  of  the  army  wasted  thus  in 
detail,  without  a  chance  for  adequate  compensation.  He  knew  its 
inherent  weakness  on  account  of  its  lack  of  ammunition  and  dis 
cipline  ;  and  during  the  remainder  of  the  summer,  and  far  into  the 
autumn  of  1775,  his  chief  care  was  to  husband  his  slender  resources, 
strengthen  his  own  position,  confine  the  enemy  close  to  their  quar 
ters,  and  to  cut  off  their  supplies  of  provisions.  In  these  efforts 
frequent  skirmishes  occurred.  They  were  wholesome  lessons  for 
the  Americans,  As  the  patriots  were  generally  successful,  these 
gave  them  confidence,  the  twin-brother  of  courage ;  and  they  learned 
skill  in  the  art  of  war. 

One  prime  element  of  strength  possessed  by  the  army  at  Cam 
bridge,  was  the  unbounded  confidence  that  all  felt  in  the  com- 
mander-in-chief.  No  weakening  doubt  oppressed  their  minds,  and 
his  words  were  laws  that  found  responsive  obedience  in  every  heart, 
from  the  highest  officer  to  the  private  soldier.  This  confidence 
was  early  felt  and  as  early  expressed.  General  Greene,  who  com 
manded  the  army  of  observation  sent  by  Rhode  Island — a  corps 
that  had  been  drilled  by  himself,  and  because  of  its  order  and 


GIG  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

perfect  military  bearing,  formed  the  elite  of  the  army — made  a 
noble  address  in  behalf  of  himself  and  his  brother  officers,  to  the 
commander-in-chief,  welcoming  him  to  the  camp.  The  sentiments 
which  he  expressed  were  responded  to  by  every  heart  and  mind  in 
the  army.  Every  person  felt  an  incomprehensible  awe  in  the 
presence  of  Washington,  yet  all  were  drawn  toward  him  by  the 
influence  of  involuntary  affection.  Every  day  officers  of  the  army 
dined  at  his  table,  and  these  were  frequently  joined  by  members  of 
the  provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts. 

On  these  occasions  Washington  was  always  social  but  never  con 
vivial.  He  was  a  stranger  to  excess  in  eating  or  drinking.  His 
diet,  at  that  time,  was  simple,  frequently  consisting  of  only  baked 
apples,  or  berries  with  cream,  and  milk.  He  seldom  took  more 
than  one  glass  of  wine  at  table ;  and  he  generally  retired  before 
any  of  his  guests,  leaving  Mifflin  or  Reed  to  represent  him.*  While 
he  could  not  be  approached  with  undue  familiarity,  no  other  re 
straint  was  felt  in  his  presence  than  that  inspired  by  the  over 
powering  influence  of  united  dignity  and  virtue.  In  fact,  Wash 
ington  stood  among  his  compatriots  at  Cambridge  like  a  giant  oak 
of  the  forest,  marvellous  and  unequalled  for  its  strength  and  colos 
sal  grandeur,  yet  sympathizing  with  all  of  the  surrounding  trees  as 
a  recipient  of  the  blessings  of  light,  and  air,  and  moisture,  from  the 
hand  of  a  common  Father,  and  linked  to  them  by  a  common  destiny. 
All  bowed  to  Washington  with  reverence,  even  at  the  outset  of  his 
leadership,  yet  they  felt  no  separating  repulsion  because  of  the 
loftiness  of  his  spirit.  They  involuntarily  recognised  his  superiority 
while  they  loved  him  as  an  elder  brother. 

By  the  middle  of  July  the  siege,  or  rather  the  blockade,  of  Bos- 

*  The  late  Colonel  John  Trumbull,  the  eminent  painter  (son  of  Governor  Trumbull,  of  Connec 
ticut),  became  a  member  of  Washington's  military  family  soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  general  at 
Cambridge,  lie  luid  accompanied  General  Spencer  to  camp,  and  had  attracted  the  favorable  notice 
of  Washington  by  some  drawings  that  he  had  made  of  the  enemy's  works.  "  I  now  found  my 
self,"  Trumbull  wrote,  "  in  the  family  of  one  of  the  most  distinguished  and  dignified  men  of  the 
age  ;  surrounded  at  his  table  by  the  principal  officers  of  the  army,  and  in  constant  intercourse  with 
them  —  it  was  further  my  duty  to  receive  company,  and  do  the  honors  of  the  house  to  many  of  the 
first  people  of  the  country,  of  both  sexes."  At  that  time  Trumbull  was  only  nineteen  years  of  age, 
quite  unaccustomed  to  society,  and  finding  himself  unequal  to  the  duties  of  that  station,  he  gladly 
accepted  the  office  of  major  of  brigade. 


&T.  43.]  FAST  DAY  IN  THE  CAMP.  617 

ton  was  fairly  commenced.  The  declaration  of  Congress,  setting 
forth  the  causes  and  the  necessity  for  taking  up  arms,  was  read  by 
President  Langdon,  of  Harvard  college,  before  the  army  at  Cam 
bridge  on  the  fifteenth.  On  the  eighteenth  it  was  read  to  the 
division  of  the  troops  under  General  Thomas,  at  Eoxbury,  and  also 
to  the  soldiers  under  Putnam,  upon  Prospect  Hill.  On  that  occasion 
that  veteran  displayed,  for  the  first  time,  the  flag  which  had  been 
sent  to  him  from  Connecticut  a  few  days  before,  on  one  side  of 
which  were  the  words,  "An  appeal  to  Heaven,"  and  on  the  other 
the  motto  in  the  seal  of  Connecticut — "  Qui  trans tulit,  sustinet" — 
meaning  that  the  same  Providence  that  brought  their  ancestors 
through  so  many  perils  to  a  place  of  refuge,  would  also  deign  to 
support  their  descendants.  At  the  close  of  the  reading  a  cannon 
was  fired,  and  three  hearty  cheers  were  given.  These  alarmed  the 
British  on  Bunker's  hill,  and,  as  on  several  other  occasions,  they 
immediately  formed  for  battle,  supposing  the  Americans  to  be 
rushing  upon  them. 

The  twentieth  being  the  day  appointed  by  Congress  for  a  conti 
nental  fast,  it  was  strictly  observed  in  the  camp.  Lee  had  scoffed 
at  the  resolution  of  Congress  on  the  subject,  saying :  "  Heaven  is 
ever  found  on  the  side  of  strong  battalions ;"  but  the  impious  sneer 
had  no  effect  but  that  of  disgust  upon  the  mind  of  Washington. 
More  humble  and  spiritual  than  the  loose  soldier  of  fortune,  he 
issued  an  order  that  morning,  requiring  all  but  absolutely  essential 
labor  to  be  suspended  during  the  day,  and  the  attendance  of  officers 
and  soldiers  upon  divine  service,  fully  armed  and  equipped  for 
action,  however :  a  necessary  precaution,  for  the  belligerents  were 
under  continual  apprehension  of  an  attack  from  each  other,  since 
the  burning  of  Brown's  houses,  on  Koxbury  Neck,  mentioned  in 
Washington's  letter  to  the  president  of  Congress,  already  quoted. 

Several  enterprises,  small  in  themselves,  but  important  in  their 
relations  to  the  future,  had  been  achieved.  On  the  twelfth,  one 
hundred  and  fifty-six  men,  under  Captain  Greaton,  went,  in  whale- 
boats  that  had  lately  been  brought  over  from  Cape  Cod,  to  Long 
Island,  in  the  harbor,  and  there  destroyed  a  quantity  of  British 


G18  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

forage.  On  the  following  day  the  British  opened  a  cannonade  from 
Boston  upon  a  party  of  Americans  at  work  on  the  strong  fort  at 
Roxbury,  but  without  effect;  and  on  the  eighteenth  there  was 
much  commotion  among  the  Americans,  for  everything  indicated 
a  sally  from  the  city,  by  the  enemy.  But  it  was  not  attempted. 
Before  daylight  of  the  twentieth,  a  party  under  Major  Vose,  of 
Heath's  regiment,  went  in  whaleboats  to  Nantasket  point,  burned 
the  lighthouse  there,  and  brought  back  with  them  a  thousand 
bushels  of  barley,  and  a  quantity  of  hay,  in  defiance  of  an  attack 
made  by  a  British  armed  schooner  and  several  barges. 

From  that  time  until  the  twenty-ninth,  when  the  British  planted 
a  bomb-battery  on  Bunker's  hill,  advanced  the  guard  on  Charles- 
town  Neck  further  into  the  country,  and  began  to  form  a  strong 
abattis  with  the  fine  old  trees  there,  very  little  of  importance  oc 
curred,  except  the  arrival  of  fourteen  hundred  riflemen,  raised  by 
authority  of  Congress,  in  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia. 
These  attracted  great  attention.  They  were  generally  powerful 
men.  All  were  expert  marksmen,*  and  many  of  them  had  been 
campaigning  companions  of  Washington  in  the  French  war.  They 
were  dressed  in  white  frocks,  or  rifle-shirts,  and  round  hats.  Among 
the  leaders  was  Daniel  Morgan,  who,  the  reader  will  remember,  had 
been  an  humble  wagoner  in  Braddock's  army  twenty  years  before, 
but  destined  to  become,  in  the  struggle  now  commenced,  a  general 
of  high  repute.  He  bore  upon  his  back  the  marks  of  a  British 
officer's  cruelty;  and  with  the  words  LIBERTY  OR  DEATH  upon  his 
breast,  he  had  marched  his  men  on  foot,  six  hundred  miles  in  three 
weeks,  to  face  the  foe  that  he  had  been  taught  to  hate.f  With 

*  "  These  men,"  says  Thatcher  (Military  Journal,  page  33),  "are  remarkable  for  the  accuracy  of 
their  aim,  striking  a  mark  with  great  certainty,  at  two  hundred  yards  distant.  At  a  review,  a  com 
pany  of  them,  while  on  a  quick  advance,  fired  their  balls  into  objects  of  seven  inches  in  diameter,  at 
the  distance  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards. 

t  Morgan  owned  a  team,  in  western  Pennsylvania,  at  the  time  of  Braddock's  expedition,  and  he 
accompanied  it  as  a  bearer  of  provision,  as  already  stated  on  page  152.  For  an  alleged  insult  to  a 
British  officer,  he  received  five  hundred  lashes  on  his  bare  back.  He  scarcely  flinched  at  the  blows, 
but  the  indignity  pierced  his  heart.  A  few  days  afterward  the  officer  became  convinced  of  the 
injustice  of  the  charge,  and  apologized  to  young  Morgan  in  the  presence  of  the  whole  regiment. 
But  that  did  not  pluck  the  hatred  from  his  breast,  which  the  punishment  had  engendered,  and  when 
the  British  became  his  foes  in  the  field,  the  remembrance  of  this  cruel  act  gave  strength  to  his  arm 
and  keenness  to  his  blade 


rty  of  A-mori'.'.ms  at   work*™  ific  ^trun-  for!   at. 
rout  ctTec*      and   on   th<-   eiglitfe^utli    there 
nuiung  tho  Americans.  for  t;Vt;ry  -tiling  nidicateu 
.!itv,  by  tlio  enemy.     But  it  VVM-*   not  otteinpted. 
ilie  twentiet^  M  l"'ll'ty  under    Major  Yose,  <» 
\ve:it  in  v.-lirjlebotit^  to  Natitnsket     >oint    burnt.-'. 


born   h.i-d    b»M-n 

K'u  v«  ;.u '.       i  '  j(-:Tr 


lie  bore  upon  hi.«  l>ack  the  mnr.-:s  of  .1  .Bm:.;t 
'  :  an<l  wiib  r-bft  words  LIUEIITV  -^K  I)K\TU  upon  l-\s 
inarched,  b^  men  on  1V>oU  ^'x  hruiched  nj:k^  iii  ils]..o 
'tlK*.  Ibe  that  be  liad  been  taahi  to  h;UAi.-i-  Wah 


1  h'<f"(H-i     *;f':»:     '.  -f'  .>'!'.?•;  •:|.':.  },r>.<f.\:  oo\  "  nro  r.nvia;k  .^\c  fo" 

-..'V  ..       ;i>lintv",  .at  t>vo  hundred    v.inis  '.llstnnt.      At  « 

'  me-'"  lulls  j  ito  oiu,v!,  ,-f  .,:-.\.vn  ir-  aes 

u,  in  wot  on  i   r-'iK^vK-;.:.!:;,  ot  fhvi  ;inn  oi   Ui  i<i«i«»«  '• 

i-  tif   7-rfj;.  isioi'l.    'i.->   Silr»  illl  -    .-t.''tr(V  i-;:    I'^iT-.     1-'.' 

n    •  ).t!n(''-i;d   lashes  ov  I'is  t.iar-..  hax  k          ••    i  -a:x»  !y  ri..;:  = 
h;«    laci.ru       /-    i;:w    .iavs   utter  '-ili'-vr   '•  ;-  '<• 


BRITISH    OFFICERS 


!|i^i^iP|p^:T 
^  rt 

^t^.^M^J      </*&A 


WASHINGTON  AND  CONGRESS.  621 

Such  were  the  general  officers  with  Gage  in  Boston,  during  its  long 
siege  by  the  Americans. 

The  organization  and  direction  of  an  army  is  all  that  can  be 
reasonably  expected  of  a  conimander-in-chief.  These,  in  the  case 
of  Washington,  were  very  onerous  duties ;  yet  others  equally  deli 
cate  and  wearisome  were  laid  upon  him.  The  Congress,  young  in 
days  and  experience,  had  not  yet  been  fully  enthroned  as  perma 
nent  representative  sovereign  and  ruler  of  the  budding  nation. 
They  were,  as  yet,  but  a  temporary  national  committee,  feeble  in 
powers  as  the  civil  head  of  the  confederacy,  imperfectly  organized 
as  a  supreme  legislature,  and  divided  in  opinion  on  important  ques 
tions  of  policy.  All  were  agreed  on  maintaining  resistance  until 
the  grievances  complained  of  should  be  redressed,  but  they  differed 
widely  in  opinion  as  to  the  best  means  to  be  employed.  And  there 
were  many  timid  ones  in  that  body,  composed  of  those  who  anx 
iously  hoped  for  a  reconciliation,  or  doubted  the  ability  of  the 
colonists  to  sustain  their  hostile  position.  Happily,  a  majority  were 
more  courageous,  and  were  willing  to  risk  every  personal  considera 
tion  in  the  cause ;  yet  these,  instructed  by  the  teachings  of  history, 
were  jealous  of  concentrated  military  power,  and  the  despotic 
tendency  of  standing  armies.  This  made  them  distrustful,  and 
caused  them  to  withhold  from  Washington  that  broad  and  unsus 
pecting  confidence  which  is  compatible  with  enlarged  and  generous 
views,  and  efficient  action.  That  distrust  was  the  legitimate  off 
spring  of  true  patriotism.  They  did  not  "love  Caesar  less,  but 
Rome  more ;"  and  this  thought  soothed  the  feelings  of  the  com 
mander-in-chief,  when  he  discovered  these  natural  misgivings  of 
Congress.  And  yet  the  opinions  of  Washington,  when  expressed, 
became  the  opinions  of  Congress.  He  was  in  constant  communi 
cation  with  that  body.  His  letters  were  read  in  open  session  and 
immediately  acted  upon ;  and  almost  every  recommendation  from 
him  concerning  the  army  was  converted,  by  the  alchemy  of  legis 
lative  action,  into  resolutions  that  went  forth  with  the  power  and 
dignity  of  absolute  laws. 

Washington's  mind  was  the  central  force  that  kept  the  compli- 


622  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

cated  machine  of  military  affairs  in  harmonious  motion,  and  his 
suggestions  often  reached  so  far  into  the  future,  that  the  inconve 
niences  arising  from  the  tardy  action  of  Congress  operating  at  a 
great  distance,  were  obviated.  Nor  was  this  all.  He  was  in  con 
tinual  communication  with  the  heads  of  provincial  governments, 
committees  of  safety,  or  other  depositories  of  power,  because,  over 
these  local  executors  of  the  people's  will,  the  Congress  had  only 
advisory  control.  Ignorant  of  the  wants  of  the  army,  and  some 
times  made  selfish  by  fear,  these  local  bodies  needed  continual 
promptings  from  the  commander-in-chief;  and  many  suggestions 
which  should  have  originated  with  the  civil  power  in  its  multi 
farious  forms,  emanated  from  his  brain.  These  duties  were  very 
arduous  and  perplexing,  and  imposed  upon  Washington  an  extra 
ordinary  weight  of  care  and  responsibility,  well  calculated  to  depress 
the  spirits  of  the  most  hopeful  man  in  the  critical  situation  in  which 
he  was  then  placed.  But  he  never  faltered  in  duty,  and  seldom 
complained ;  and  the  necessity  of  unceasing  intercourse  with  such 
a  variety  of  minds,  even  gave  him  a  compensating  advantage, 
because  it  brought  him  into  more  immediate  contact  with  the 
sources  of  the  power  that  must  sustain  him.  This  contact  widened 
his  influence,  and  enabled  him  to  cast  the  light  of  his  lamp  of  ex 
perience  and  wisdom  upon  many  dark  places  where  it  was  greatly 
needed.  Few  men,  however,  could  have  borne  the  weight  of  such 
cares,  and,  at  the  same  time,  continued  to  perform  every  duty  with 
scrupulous  exactness,  punctuality,  and  conscientious  fidelity  to  the 
great  trust  reposed  in  him  by  the  nation. 

At  this  time  Washington's  firmness,  wisdom,  and  self-reliance, 
experienced  a  severe  trial.  British  armed  vessels  were  hovering 
upon  the  New  England  coast,  seizing  small  craft,  and  menacing  the 
villages  and  hamlets  within  their  reach,  with  plunder  and  devasta 
tion.  Alarm  was  wide-spread  from  Long  Island  sound  almost  to 
the  St.  Croix,  and  the  people  appealed  to  the  authorities  of  Massa 
chusetts  and  Connecticut  for  protection.  The  general  assembly  of 
Massachusetts,  a  new  and  stronger  organization  of  the  civil  power, 
which  had  succeeded  that  of  the  provincial  Congress  on  the  nine- 


43.]  ALARMING  DISCOVERY.  625 


CHAPTER   LIV. 

ALARMING  DEFICIENCY  IN  POWDER WASHINGTON'S    URGENT    APPEALS EFFORTS 

OF     GOVERNOR     COOKE ECONOMY     OBSERVED THIS    WANT    KNOWN    TO    THE 

ENEMY HIS    INACTIVITY — 'THE    CAUSE SUPPLIES    OF    POWDER    ARRIVE EX 
PEDITION    AGAINST    NOVA    SCOTIA    PROPOSED DISCOURAGED    BY    WASHINGTON, 

AND  ABANDONED LEE  AND  BURGOYNE TREATMENT  OF  PRISONERS CORRES 
PONDENCE    BETWEEN     WASHINGTON    AND     GATES WASHINGTON'S     CLEMENCY 

PUBLICATION    OF    THE    CORRESPONDENCE DISTRESS    IN    BOSTON INCENDIARY 

HANDBILLS "THE    CRISIS" RELEASE    OF  THE    CITIZENS THE  AMERICANS   ON 

PLOUGHED    HILL BATTLE    THREATENED CANNONADING FRANKLIN'S    MATH 
EMATICAL  PROBLEM. 

THE  darkest  cloud  that  overshadowed  the  hopeful  mind  of  Wash 
ington  since  his  arrival  in  camp,  appeared  on  the  third  of  August, 
when  the  alarming  fact  of  the  great  scarcity  of  powder,  to  which 
we  have  already  alluded,  became  known.  The  committee  of  sup 
plies  had  been  tardy  in  making  their  returns.  Their  report  of  the 
amount  was  rather  satisfactory ;  but  now,  on  ordering  a  new  supply 
of  cartridges,  a  great  error  was  found  in  their  return.  Instead  of 
three  hundred  barrels  of  powder  in  store  there  were  only  thirty 
barrels,  writh  no  sure  prospect  of  an  early  receipt  of  more. 

This  was  a  most  astounding  discovery,  at  a  moment  when  the 
enemy  seemed  to  be  preparing  for  an  immediate  attack,  and  the 
continental  artillery  must  necessarily  become  useless.  A  council 
of  war  was  immediately  held,  and  expresses  were  despatched,  early 
on  the  following  morning,  to  Rhode  Island,  New  Jersey,  Ticonderoga, 
and  other  points,  where  powder  and  lead  might  be  procured.  The 
commander-in-chief  wrote  an  urgent  letter  to  Governor  Cooke,  of 
Rhode  Island,  on  the  subject — "It  is  not  within  the  propriety  or 
safety  of  such  a  correspondence,  to  say  what  I  might  on  this  sub 
ject,"  he  remarked.  "It  is  sufficient  that  the  case  calls  loudly  for 

40 


626  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

the  most  strenuous  exertions  of  every  friend  of  his  country,  and 
does  not  admit  of  the  least  delay.  No  quantity,  however  small,  is 
beneath  notice,  and,  should  any  arrive,  I  beg  it  may  be  forwarded 
as  soon  as  possible."  Washington  then  informed  the  governor,  that 
he  had  been  told  that  on  a  remote  part  of  the  British  island  of 
Bermuda,  there  was  a  considerable  magazine  of  powder;  and  he 
suggested  the  propriety  of  despatching  an  armed  vessel,  then  in 
Narraganset  bay,  for  the  purpose  of  seizing  it.  "  I  am  very  sensi 
ble,"  he  said,  u  that  at  first  view  the  project  may  appear  hazardous ; 
and  its  success  must  depend  on  the  concurrence  of  many  circum 
stances  ;  but  we  are  in  a  situation  which  requires  us  to  run  all  risks. 
No  danger  is  to  be  considered,  when  put  in  competition  with  the 
magnitude  of  the  cause,  and  the  absolute  necessity  we  are  under 
of  increasing  our  stock." 

To  this  letter  Governor  Cooke  make  a  cheering  reply  on  the 
eighth,  informing  Washington  that  his  colony  had  already  de 
spatched  a  vessel  to  purchase  fifteen  tons  of  powder,  and  that  he 
was  advised  of  another  vessel  sent  from  Providence,  having  sailed 
from  Cape  Francois,  laden  with  warlike  stores,  and  was  hourly 
expected.  But  mornings  and  evenings  came  and  went,  and  no 
supplies  arrived  from  any  quarter.  Those  who  were  made  ac 
quainted  with  the  scarcity  waited  with  anxiety.  The  utmost  econ 
omy  was  observed  in  the  use  of  ammunition ;  and,  on  the  twelfth 
of  August,  the  Massachusetts  assembly  "Resolved,  That  it  be,  and  it 
hereby  is  recommended  to  the  inhabitants  of  this  colony,  not  to 
fire  a  gun  at  beast,  bird,  or  mark,  without  real  necessity  therefor." 
Even  the  occasional  shots  from  the  enemy  remained  unanswered  — 
"  We  are  obliged  to  bear  with  the  rascals  on  Bunker's  hill,"  wrote 
Washington's  secretary,*  "  when  a  few  shots,  now  and  then,  in 
return,  would  keep  our  men  attentive  to  their  business,  and  give 
the  enemy  alarms." 

The  fear  that  this  poverty  might  become  known  to  the  enemy 
was  very  harassing.  It  was  carefully  concealed  from  the  conti 
nental  troops,  for  fear  of  creating  fatal  alarm,  and  every  precaution 

*  Colonel  Joseph  Reed,  to  Mr.  Bradford. — Life  and  Correspondence  of  President  Reed,  i.,  119. 


JEr.  43.]  A  CRITICAL  SITUATION.  627 

was  used  to  prevent  the  fact  becoming  known  to  the  British.  To 
do  so  was  difficult.  The  camps  on  Prospect  and  Winter  hills  were 
in  full  view  of  that  of  the  enemy  on  Bunker's  hill.  Almost  every 
movement  in  the  respective  camps  might  be  seen  by  the  troops  in 
each,  and  the  sentries  of  the  belligerents  near  Charlestown  Neck, 
actually  conversed  together  when  secret  opportunities  occurred. 
But  so  boldly  did  the  Americans  deport  themselves  in  the  face  of 
the  enemy,  that  the  story  of  this  poverty,  whether  communicated 
by  unfaithful  sentries  to  the  willing  ears  of  their  opponents,  or,  as 
is  alleged,  by  a  deserter,*  seems  to  have  been  discredited  by  the 
British  commander,  for  he  remained  inactive  at  a  time  when  he 
might  have  struck  a  conquering  blow.  This,  however,  was  not  this 
whole  cause  of  his  inaction.  Gage  was  wrell  assured  that  his  first 
blow  had  been  dealt  at  the  wrong  time,  in  the  wrong  place,  and  in 
the  wrong  way.  He  had  recently  learned  that  his  conduct  in  the 
affairs  at  Lexington  and  Concord  were  disapproved  by  the  ministry, 
and  he  felt  quite  sure,  that  the  result  of  the  battle  of  Bunker's  hill 
would  not  conciliate  their  favor.  Fortunately  for  the  Americans  at 
this  alarming  crisis,  these  reflections  made  Gage  exceedingly  timid 
and  cautious;  and  instead  of  meditating  new  enterprises  on  the 
soil  of  Massachusetts,  he  was  really  anxious  to  escape  to  New  York, 
where,  as  he  alleged  in  a  letter  to  Dartmouth,  toward  the  close  of 
July  (in  which  he  suggested  the  propriety  of  such  steps),  "  the 
friends  of  government  are  more  numerous." 

Kumors  of  such  an  intention  had  reached  the  ears  of  Washing 
ton,  and  he  was  inclined  to  credit  them.  "  I  have  been  endeavor 
ing,"  he  said  in  a  letter  to  the  provincial  Congress  of  New  York,  on 
the  eighth  of  August,  "  by  every  means  in  my  power,  to  discover 
the  future  intentions  of  our  enemy  here.  I  find  a  general  idea 
prevailing,  throughout  the  army  and  in  the  town  of  Boston,  that 
the  troops  are  soon  to  leave  the  town  and  go  to  some  other  part  of 
the  continent.  New  York  is  generally  mentioned  as  the  place  of 

*  Lord  Mahon,  in  his  "History  of  England"  (vi.,  100),  says,  "This  deficiency  of  powder,  in 
some  degree  at  least,  though  not  to  its  full  extent,  was  known  to  the  British  general.  It  had  been 
disclosed  by  a  deserter." 


628  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

their  destination.  I  should  think  a  rumor  or  suggestion  of  this 
kind  worthy  of  very  little  notice,  if  it  were  not  confirmed  by  some 
corresponding  circumstances.  But  four  weeks  of  total  inactivity, 
with  all  their  reinforcements  arrived  and  recruited,  the  daily  dimi 
nution  by  desertion  and  sickness,  and  small  skirmishes,  induce  an 
opinion,  that  any  effort  they  propose  to  make  will  be  directed 
elsewhere."  Gage  had  learned,  by  sad  experience,  the  temper  of 
the  New  England  'people,  and  especially  of  those  of  Massachusetts ; 
and  in  his  letter  to  Dartmouth,  after  averring,  in  despairing  lan 
guage,  that  the  rebellion  was  general,  he  said:  "This  province 
began  it — I  might  say  this  town;  for  here  the  arch-rebels  formed 
their  scheme  long  ago.  This  circumstance  brought  the  troops  first 
here,  which  is  the  most  disadvantageous  place  for  all  operations." 

At  about  the  middle  of  August,  a  small  supply  of  powder  was 
received  from  New  Jersey.  Meanwhile  Governor  Cooke  had  for 
warded  thirteen  hundred  pounds  of  lead ;  and  from  that  time,  small 
quantities  of  ammunition  were  received  almost  daily.  That  from 
New  Jersey  was  a  seasonable  supply.  "I  can  hardly  look  back 
without  shuddering,"  Colonel  Reed  wrote  on  the  twenty-first,  "  at 
our  situation  before  this  increase  of  our  stock.  Stocky  did  I  say  ? 
It  was  next  to  nothing.  Almost  the  whole  powder  of  the  army 
was  in  the  cartridge-boxes." 

At  the  close  of  August  two  vessels  arrived  at  Newport,  from  the 
coast  of  Africa,  laden  with  powder.  They  had  sailed  from  Rhode 
Island  early  in  the  year,  with  cargoes  of  New  England  rum,  which 
they  exchanged  with  the  commanders  of  one  or  two  British  forts 
on  the  west  coast  of  Africa,  for  powder.  It  proved  a  profitable 
speculation  for  the  skippers,  and  a  great  blessing  to  the  patriots, 
for  Governor  Cooke  purchased  the  powder,  and  sent  a  larger  por 
tion  of  it  to  the  camp  at  Cambridge.  Thus  supplied  with  ammuni 
tion,  and  weary  of  inaction,  Washington  now  felt  a  desire  to  meas 
ure  strength  with  the  enemy  in  battle. 

At  this  time  a  spirit  for  naval  warfare  had  become  developed 
among  the  seamen  of  New  England,  and  armed  vessels,  fitted  out 
on  private  account,  were  darting  out  from  many  a  bay  or  river's 


MT.  43.]  AN  INVASION  DISCOURAGED.  629 

mouth,  to  seize  British  merchantmen  and  other  vessels.  Embold 
ened  by  some  successes  of  this  kind,  the  people  of  Machias,  in 
Maine,  who  were  chiefly  employed  in  maratime  pursuits,  proposed 
an  expedition  against  the  neighboring  province  of  Nova  Scotia,  the 
colonists  there  having,  like  those  of  Canada,  refused  to  join  in  the 
revolt.  A  committee  of  the  general  court  of  Massachusetts  (in 
which  body  the  enterprise  had  some  advocates)  laid  the  matter 
before  Washington.  He  at  once  discouraged  the  scheme  as  inex 
pedient  if  not  improper.  He  applauded  the  zeal  of  the  projectors, 
but  added :  "  I  apprehend  such  an  enterprise  to  be  inconsistent  with 
the  general  principle  upon  which  the  colonies  have  proceeded. 
That  province  has  not  acceded,  it  is  true,  to  the  measures  of  Con 
gress  ;  and,  therefore,  it  has  been  excluded  from  all  commercial 
intercourse  with  the  other  colonies ;  but  it  has  not  commenced  hos 
tilities  against  them,  nor  are  any  to  be  apprehended.  To  attack  it, 
therefore,  is  a  measure  of  conquest  rather  than  of  defence,  and  may 
be  attended  with  very  dangerous  consequences.  It  might,  perhaps, 
be  easy,  with  the  force  proposed,  to  make  an  incursion  into  the 
province  and  overawe  the  inhabitants,  who  are  inimical  to  our 
cause,  and,  for  a  short  time,  prevent  their  supplying  the  enemy 
with  provisions ;  but,  to  produce  any  lasting  effects,  the  same  force 
must  continue."  He  then  alluded  to  the  disparity  in  naval  strength 
between  the  British  and  the  Americans,  and  the  danger  of  the 
vessels  of  the  latter  falling  an  easy  prey  "  either  to  the  men-of-war 
on  that  station,  or  to  some  which  would  be  detached  from  Boston." 
The  enterprise  was  abandoned. 

An  interesting  episode  in  the  history  of  current  events  had  re 
cently  occurred.  It  was  of  an  epistolary  character.  General  Lee, 
the  reader  will  remember,  won  laurels  in  Spain  under  General 
Burgoyne.  They  had  been  personal  friends  ever  since,  and  it  was 
painful  to  both  to  find  themselves  in  an  attitude  of  deadly  hostility 
to  each  other.  Lee  was  in  Philadelphia  when  he  heard  of  the 
arrival  of  Burgoyne  at  Boston.  It  was  before  his  appointment  to 
office  in  the  army.  He  felt  a  great  desire  to  communicate  with  his 
old  commander,  and  he  accordingly  wrote  him  a  letter  on  the  sub- 


630  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

ject  of  the  pending  disputes,  which  was  characterized  by  his  usual 
vigor  and  sarcasm,  respecting  the  court  and  ministry.  Before  send 
ing  the  letter  he  submitted  it  to  the  New  England  delegates  in 
Congress.  They  approved  of  it,  and  it  was  forwarded  to  Boston. 

Soon  after  Lee's  arrival  in  camp,  he  received  a  very  courteous 
reply  from  Burgoyne,  in  which  he  proposed  a  personal  interview, 
under  mutual  pledges  of  safety,  at  a  house  on  Boston  Neck,  within 
the  beat  of  the  British  sentries.  This  letter  was  submitted  to  the 
provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts,  who,  after  expressing  their 
confidence  in  the  wisdom,  discretion,  and  integrity  of  Lee,  sug 
gested  to  him  the  propriety  of  having  the  company  of  Elbridge 
Gerry  at  the  interview,  to  prevent  popular  misconception  ;  "  a  people 
contending  for  their  liberties,"  they  said,  "  being  naturally  disposed 
to  jealousy."  The  wisdom  of  this  caution  was  apparent  to  Lee, 
and  unwilling  to  awaken  any  unfavorable  suspicions,  he  declined 
the  interview  with  Burgoyne. 

A  correspondence  far  more  important  transpired  soon  afterward, 
and  forms  a  part  of  the  episode  to  which  we  have  alluded.  For 
some  time  the  known  rigorous  treatment  of  American  prisoners  in 
the  hands  of  the  British,  had  exercised  the  mind  of  Washington, 
and  he  resolved  to  have  a  full  and  clear  understanding  with  General 
Gage  upon  the  subject.  These  gentlemen  had  also  long  been  per 
sonal  friends.  They  had  fought  together  on  the  bloody  field  of  the 
Monongahela ;  and,  until  a  change  in  their  political  relations  oc 
curred,  they  had  always  held  a  friendly  correspondence.  Now 
they  stood  opposed  to  each  other,  almost  within  bugle-call,  as  com- 
manders-in-chief  of  hostile  armies ;  and,  in  point  of  rank,  they  held 
an  equal  position,  however  much  Gage  might  affect  to  despise 
Washington  as  the  "  chief  of  a  rebel  force."  At  length  the  latter 
was  informed,  that  some  of  the  officers  captured  on  Bunker's  hill 
were  confined  in  the  common  jail,  in  Boston,  and  were  suffering 
all  the  indignities  and  privations  of  malefactors.  His  sympathies 
promptly  responded  to  the  appeal  which  these  facts  made  to  his 
justice,  and  on  the  eleventh  of  August,  he  addressed  the  following 
letter  to  General  Gage : — 


IMPORTANT  CORRESPONDENCE.  631 

"  SIR  :  I  understand  that  the  officers  engaged  in  the  cause  of  lib 
erty  and  their  country,  who,  by  the  fortune  of  war  have  Mien  into 
your  hands,  have  been  thrown  indiscriminately  into  a  common  gaol, 
appropriated  for  felons;  that  no  consideration  has  been  had  for 
those  of  the  most  respectable  rank  when  languishing  with  wounds 
and  sickness ;  and  that  some  have  been  even  amputated  in  this  un 
worthy  situation. 

"  Let  your  opinion,  sir,  of  the  principle  which  actuates  them,  be 
what  it  may,  they  suppose  that  they  act  from  the  noblest  of  all 
principles,  a  love  of  freedom  and  their  country.  But  political  prin 
ciples,  I  conceive,  are  foreign  to  this  point.  The  obligations  arising 
from  the  rights  of  humanity  and  claims  of  rank,  are  universally 
binding  and  extensive,  except  in  cases  of  retaliation.  These,  I 
should  have  hoped,  would  have  dictated  a  more  tender  treatment 
of  those  individuals,  whom  chance  or  war  had  put  in  your  power. 
Nor  can  I  forbear  suggesting  its  fatal  tendency  to  widen  that  un 
happy  breach  which  you  and  those  ministers  under  whom  you  act, 
have  repeatedly  declared,  your  wish  is  to  see  for  ever  closed. 

"  My  duty  now  makes  it  necessary  to  apprise  you,  that  for  the 
future  I  shall  regulate  all  my  conduct  toward  those  gentlemen  who 
are  or  may  be  in  our  possession,  exactly  by  the  rule  you  shall 
observe  toward  those  of  ours  now  in  your  custody :  if  severity  and 
hardship  mark  the  line  of  your  conduct,  painful  as  it  may  be  to  me, 
your  prisoners  will  feel  its  effects.  But  if  kindness  and  humanity 
are  shown  to  ours,  I  shall,  with  pleasure,  consider  those  in  our  hands 
as  only  unfortunate,  and  they  shall  receive  from  me  that  treatment 
to  which  the  unfortunate  are  ever  entitled." 

To  this  courteous  and  humane  letter,  Washington  requested  an 
answer  as  soon  as  possible  ;  and,  on  the  thirteenth,  he  received  from 
Gage  an  insolent  and  unfeeling  one.  As  that  general  acknowledged 
no  rank  "  not  derived  from  the  king,"  he  addressed  the  commander" 
in-chief  of  the  continental  army,  as  "George  Washington,  Esq.," 
and  said : — 

"  SIR  :  To  the  glory  of  civilized  nations,  humanity  and  war  have 
been  compatible ;  and  compassion  to  the  subdued  has  become  al- 


632  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

most  a  general  system.  Britons,  ever  pre-eminent  in  mercy,  have 
outgone  common  examples,  and  overlooked  the  criminal  in  the 
captive.  Upon  these  principles,  your  prisoners,  whose  lives,  by 
the  laws  of  the  land,  are  destined  to  the  cord,  have  hitherto  been 
treated  with  kindness  and  more  comfortably  than  the  king's  troops 
in  the  hospitals  —  indiscriminately,  it  is  true,  for  I  acknowledge  no 
rank  that  is  not  derived  from  the  king. 

"  My  intelligence  from  your  army  would  justify  severe  recrimina 
tion.  I  understand  there  are  some  of  the  king's  faithful  subjects, 
taken  some  time  since  by  the  rebels,  laboring  like  negro-slaves  to 
gain  their  daily  sustenance,  or  reduced  to  the  wretched  alternative 
to  perish  by  famine,  or  take  up  arms  against  their  king  or  country. 
Those  who  have  made  the  treatment  of  prisoners  in  my  hands,  or 
of  your  other  friends  in  Boston,  a  pretence  for  such  measures,  found 
barbarity  upon  falsehood. 

"I  would  willingly  hope,  sir,  that  the  sentiments  of  liberality 
which  I  have  always  believed  you  to  possess,  will  be  exerted  to 
correct  these  misdoings.  Be  temperate  in  political  disquisition— 
give  free  operation  to  truth,  and  punish  those  who  deceive  and 
misrepresent;  and  not  only  the  effects,  but  the  causes  of  this  un 
happy  conflict  will  be  removed.  Should  those  under  whose  usurped 
authority  you  act,  control  such  a  disposition,  and  dare  to  call  sever 
ity  retaliation,  to  God,  who  knows  all  hearts,  be  the  appeal  for  the 
dreadful  consequences.  I  trust  that  British  soldiers,  asserting  the 
rights  of  the  state,  the  laws  of  the  land,  the  being  of  the  constitu 
tion,  will  meet  all  events  with  becoming  fortitude.  They  will  court 
victory  with  the  spirit  their  cause  inspires,  and  from  the  same 
motive  will  find  the  patience  of  martyrs  under  misfortune. 

"  Till  I  read  your  insinuations  in  regard  to  ministers,  I  conceived 
that  I  had  acted  under  the  king,  whose  wishes,  it  is  true,  as  well  as 
those  of  his  ministers,  and  of  every  honest  man,  have  been  to  see 
this  unhappy  breach  for  ever  closed :  but  unfortunately  for  both 
countries,  those  who  long  since  projected  the  present  crisis,  and 
influence  the  counsels  of  America,  have  views  very  distant  from 
accommodation." 


jET.  43.]  INSOLENCE  OF  POWER.  633 

No  doubt  this  indiscreet  and  insulting  letter  kindled,  for  a  mo 
ment,  the  hottest  indignation  in  the  bosom  of  Washington.  But 
that  rein  of  judgment  with  which  he  controlled  his  naturally  strong 
passions  was  efficient  on  this  occasion,  as  on  all  others.  No  doubt 
he  felt  the  most  bitter  scorn  and  saddest  pity  for  Gage,  because  a 
mere  creature  of  royal  authority,  whose  official  existence  may 
depend  upon  the  breath,  sometimes  of  a  despot  and  sometimes  of  a 
fool,  talking  to  the  chosen  representative  of  an  intelligent  people 
struggling  for  freedom  and  justice,  as  a  "  rebel"  fit  for  the  "  cord," 
is,  to  the  eye  of  true  manhood,  a  despicable  spectacle.  In  this 
instance  it  was  made  doubly  so,  by  the  character  of  the  two  men 
—  one  a  noble  and  disinterested  patriot,  serving  his  country  without 
pay,  and  sacrificing  the  dearest  enjoyments  of  life  for  his  country's 
welfare ;  the  other  a  hired  soldier  of  fortune,  and  inferior  in  mili 
tary  genius,  as  his  early  recall  from  the  scene  of  fatal  blunders  soon 
afterward  attested.  But  that  scorn  and  pity  were  not  manifested 
by  Washington,  except  in  giving  strength  to  the  dignified  reply 
which  he  made  after  diligent  inquiry  concerning  the  charges  of 
cruelty  toward  British  prisoners,  preferred  by  General  Gage. 

Pursuant  to  his  threat,  the  commander-in-chief,  after  receiving 
Gage's  insulting  letter,  ordered  all  of  the  British  prisoners  then  on 
parole  at  Watertown  and  Cape  Ann,  to  be  closely  confined  in 
Northampton  jail,  without  distinction  of  rank.  At  the  same  time 
he  courteously  explained  to  these  unfortunates,  that  the  cause  of 
this  harsh  treatment  lay  with  their  own  general.  This  accom 
plished,  he  sent  the  following  reply  to  Gage,  on  the  twentieth  of 
August : — 

"  SIR  :  I  addressed  you  on  the  eleventh  instant,  in  terms  which 
gave  the  fairest  scope  for  that  humanity  and  politeness  which  were 
supposed  to  form  a  part  of  your  character.  I  remonstrated  with 
you  on  the  unworthy  treatment  shown  to  officers  and  citizens  of 
America,  whom  the  fortune  of  war,  chance,  or  a  mistaken  confi 
dence,  had  thrown  into  your  hands.  Whether  British  or  American 
mercy,  fortitude,  and  patience,  are  most  pre-eminent ;  whether  our 
virtuous  citizens,  whom  the  hand  of  tyranny  has  forced  into  arms, 


634  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

to  defend  their  wives,  their  children,  and  their  property,  or  the 
mercenary  instruments  of  lawless  domination,  avarice,  and  revenge, 
best  deserve  the  appellation  of  rebels,  and  the  punishment  of  that 
cord  which  your  affected  clemency  has  forborne  to  inflict ;  whether 
the  authority  under  which  I  act  is  usurped,  or  founded  on  the 
genuine  principles  of  liberty,  were  altogether  foreign  to  the  subject. 
I  purposely  avoided  all  political  disquisition ;  nor  will  I  now  avail 
myself  of  those  advantages  which  the  sacred  cause  of  my  country, 
of  liberty,  and  of  human  nature  give  me  over  you ;  much  less  shall 
I  stoop  to  retort  and  invective  —  but  the  intelligence  you  say  you 
have  received  from  our  army  requires  a  reply.  I  have  taken  time, 
sir,  to  make  a  strict  inquiry,  and  find  it  has  not  the  least  foundation 
in  truth.  Not  only  your  officers  and  soldiers  have  been  treated 
with  the  tenderness  due  to  fellow-citizens  and  brethren,  but  even 
those  execrable  parricides,*  whose  counsels  and  aid  have  deluged 
their  country  with  blood,  have  been  protected  from  the  fury  of  a 
justly  outraged  people.  Far  from  compelling  or  permitting  their 
assistance,  I  am  embarrassed  with  the  number  who  crowd  to  our 
camp,  animated  with  the  purest  principles  of  virtue  and  love  to 
their  country. 

"  You  advise  me  to  give  free  operation  to  truth,  and  to  punish 
misrepresentation  and  falsehood.  If  experience  stamps  value  upon 
counsel,  yours  must  have  a  weight  which  few  can  claim.  You  best 
can  tell  how  far  the  convulsion  which  has  brought  such  ruin  on 
both  countries,  and  shaken  the  mighty  empire  of  Britain  to  its  foun 
dation,  may  be  traced  to  these  malignant  causes.  You  affect  to 
despise  all  rank  not  derived  from  the  same  source  with  your  own. 
I  can  not  conceive  one  more  honorable  than  that  which  flows  from 
the  uncorrupted  choice  of  a  brave  and  free  people,  the  purest 
source  and  original  fountain  of  all  power.  Far  from  making  it  a 
plea  for  cruelty,  a  mind  of  true  magnanimity  and  enlarged  ideas, 
would  comprehend  and  respect  it. 

"  What  may  have  been  the  ministerial  views  which  have  precipi- 

*  The  tories.     During  the  whole  war,  the  conduct  of  these  men  caused  them  to  be  more  thor 
oughly  hated  by  the  Americans  than  were  even  the  Hessian  soldiers 


JET.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  GENEROSITY.  635 

tated  the  present  crisis,  Lexington,  Concord,  and  Charlestown,  can 
best  declare.  May  that  God  to  whom  you  then  appealed,  judge 
between  America  and  you.  Under  his  providence,  those  who  in 
fluence  the  councils  of  America,  and  all  the  other  inhabitants  of 
the  United  Colonies,  at  the  hazard  of  their  lives,  are  determined  to 
hand  down  to  posterity  those  just  and  invaluable  privileges  which 
they  received  from  their  ancestors.  I  shall  now,  sir,  close  my  cor 
respondence  with  you,  perhaps  for  ever.  If  your  officers,  our 
prisoners,  receive  a  treatment  from  me  different  from  that  I  wished 
to  show  them,  they  and  you  will  remember  the  occasion  of  it." 

This  letter  did  close  the  correspondence  between  the  two  com 
manders  for  ever.  But  Washington's  humanity  would  not  allow 
him  to  retaliate  by  inflicting  punishment  upon  innocent  men  be 
cause  of  the  savage  cruelty  of  another.  The  first  impulses  of  his 
nature  were  subdued  by  the  generosity  of  his  spirit,  awakened  by 
reflection,  and  while  the  British  prisoners  were  on  their  way  to 
Northampton  jail,  he  directed  his  secretary,  Colonel  Reed,  to  write 
to  the  committee  of  that  town,  requesting  them  to  allow  the  cap 
tives  to  go  abroad  upon  their  parole,  immediately  after  their  arrival. 
Mr.  Reed  was  instructed  to  add — "The  general  further  requests, 
that  every  other  indulgence  and  civility  consistent  with  their  secur 
ity  may  be  shown  to  them,  as  long  as  they  demean  themselves  with 
decency  and  good  manners.  As  they  have  committed  no  hostility 
against  the  people  of  this  country,  they  have  a  just  claim  to  mild 
treatment;  and  the  general  does  not  doubt,  that  your  conduct 
toward  them  will  be  such,  as  to  compel  their  grateful  acknowledg 
ments  that  Americans  are  as  merciful  as  they  are  brave." 

The  correspondence  between  Washington  and  Gage  attracted 
much  attention  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  The  contrast  in 
temper  and  spirit  displayed  by  them,  was  very  unfavorable  to  the 
British  commander;  and  one  of  the  most  significant  commentaries 
upon  the  whole  transaction  was  the  fact,  that  the  first  two  letters 
were  published  by  the  ministry  in  the  "  London  Gazette,"  about  six 
weeks  after  they  were  written,  but  the  dignified  reply  of  Washing 
ton  to  Gage  was  carefully  suppressed.  Ministers  well  knew  that  its 


636  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

publication  would  be  seriously  damaging  to  their  cause,  and  so  they 
ungenerously  concealed  it  from  the  British  people.  The  whole 
correspondence  was  published,  together,  in  October  following,  by 
order  of  the  continental  Congress. 

The  rigid  custody  which  the  American  army  on  land,  and  priva 
teers  at  sea,  exercised  over  that  of  the  British  in  Boston,  soon 
began  to  have  a  serious  effect  upon  the  officers,  troops,  and  people, 
there.  At  the  close  of  July,  Washington  assured  his  brother,  John 
Augustine,  that  he  had  done,  and  should  continue  to  do,  all  in  his 
power  to  distress  them.  "  The  enemy  are  sickly,"  he  wrote,  "  and 
in  want  of  fresh  provisions.  Beef,  which  is  chiefly  got  by  slaugh 
tering  their  milch  cows,  in  Boston,  sells  from  one  shilling  to  eighteen 
pence  sterling,  per  pound ;  and  that  it  may  not  become  cheaper  or 
more  plenty,  I  have  driven  all  the  stock  within  a  considerable  dis 
tance  of  this  place  back  into  the  country,  out  of  the  way  of  the 
men-of-war's  boats."  Gage  had  been  reinforced  since  the  battle  of 
Bunker's  hill,  but  the  new-comers  were  a  burden  rather  than  an 
aid ;  for  he  had  the  sagacity  to  perceive,  that  twice  the  number  of 
troops  then  under  his  command  were  insufficient  to  effectually 
disperse  the  continental  army,  backed,  as  it  was,  by  other  thousands 
ready  to  step  from  the  furrow  to  the  intrenchments,  when  necessity 
should  call  them.  Idleness  begat  vice,  in  various  forms,  in  his 
camp,  and  inaction  was  as  likely  to  decimate  his  battalions  as  the 
weapons  of  his  enemy.  Rum  was  cheap.  Intoxication  was  the 
rule,  not  the  exception;  and  salt  pork  and  fish  produced  their 
legitimate  diseases. 

In  addition  to  their  privations,  the  British  officers  were  much 
annoyed  by  the  circulation  of  incendiary  hand-bills  among  their 
soldiers.  How  they  found  their  way  into  the  British  camp  no  one 
could  tell.  "  They  were  blown  in,"  says  one  authority :  "  They  were 
dispersed  among  the  rank  and  file  by  the  American  sentinels,"  says 
another.  One  of  these,  preserved  in  the  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society,  is  a  fair  specimen.  It  is  a  small  broadside,  printed  in 
London,  and  contains  an  address  to  the  soldiers  who  were  about 
embarking  for  America.  Speaking  of  the  course  of  the  colonists, 


JRf.  43.]  INCENDIARY  PUBLICATIONS.  637 

the  writer  says,  in  a  line  of  large  letters,  "  BEFORE  GOD  AND  MAN,  THEY 
ARE  RIGHT."  This  handbill  is  endorsed  on  the  back  by  the  following 
appeal,  evidently  printed  in  America,  in  which  allusion  is  made  to 
the  two  chief  camps :  the  one  on  Prospect  hill,  under  Putnam ;  the 
other  on  Bunker's  hill,  under  Howe : — 


"  PROSPECT  HILL. 

I.  Seven  dollars  a  month, 
II.  Fresh  provisions,  and  in  plenty, 

III.  Health, 

IV.  Freedom,   ease,    affluence,   and   a 


BUNKER'S  HILL. 

I.  Three  pence  a  day, 
II.  Rotten  salt  pork, 

III.  The  scurvy, 

IV.  Slavery,  beggary,  and  want.' 


good  farm. 

These  were  secret  and  powerful  emissaries  to  awaken  mutiny  and 
promote  desertion ;  for  the  soldiers,  in  their  idle  moments,  pondered 
much  upon  the  plain  truths  which  these  circulars  contained.* 

The  few  patriots  who  remained  in  Boston  suffered  greatly. 
Some,  who  were  suspected  of  sketching  plans  of  the  military 
works,  telegraphing  with  the  provincials  by  signals  from  steeples, 
and  various  other  acts  inimical  to  the  royal  cause,  were  cast  into 
prison.  At  length  provisions  in  the  city  became  so  scarce,  and  the 

*  An  occasional  publication,  called  "The  Crisis,"  was  published  in  London,  in  1775,  and  was 
republished  in  New  York,  to  the  twenty-eighth  number,  by  John  Anderson.  One  of  them  was 
addressed,  "  To  the  Officers,  Soldiers,  and  Seamen,  who  may  be  employed  to  butcher  their  Rela 
tions,  Friends,  and  Fellow-Subjects  in  America."  This  was  a  highly  inflammatory  appeal,  and  in 
spite  of  the  vigilance  of  the  government,  it  obtained  a  wide  circulation  where  it  was  intended  to 
have  its  most  potent  effects.  The  boldness  of  the  writer  was  remarkable.  The  third  number  was 
addressed  "  To  the  King."  Nothing  like  it  had  ever  appeared  before.  It  spoke  to  him  of  his 
"fourteen  years  shameful  and  inglorious  reign;"  his  " critical  and  dangerous  situation;"  his  "rotten 
troop  in  the  present  house  of  commons;"  his  "venal,  beggarly,  pensioned  lords;"  his  "polluted, 
canting,  prostituted  house  of  bishops  ;"  and  his  "whole  set  of  abandoned  ministers ;"  and  told  him 
that  these,  and  his  whole  "army  of  Scotch  cut-throats,"  could  not  protect  him  "from  the  people's 
rage,  when  driven,  by  oppression,  to  a  state  of  desperation."  It  called  him  a  "  tyrant,"  spoke  of 
"the  bloody  and  despotic  transactions"  of  his  reign,  and  warned  him,  that  the  people  would  not 
"  tamely  see  a  mercenary  army  of  soldiers,  who  are  at  all  times  a  terror  to  the  peaceful  inhabitants 
of  every  free  state,  butcher  their  brethren  and  fellow-subjects  in  America ;"  and  that,  "  whenever  the 
state  is  convulsed  by  civil  commotions,  and  the  constitution  totters  to  its  centre,  the  throne  of  England 
must  shake  with  it :  a  crown  will  then  be  no  security,  and  at  ONE  STROKE,  all  the  gaudy  trappings 
of  royalty  may  be  laid  in  the  dust."  This  number,  so  bold  and  seditious,  was  ordered  to  be  burned 
by  the  common  hangman.  The  populace  of  London  interfered,  and  the  act  of  Parliament,  author 
izing  the  sending  of  troops  to  America,  was  cast  upon  the  fire  with  it.  "  The  Crisis"  was  printed 
by  "  Thomas  Shaw,  Fleet  street,"  and  the  twenty-eighth  number  contained  his  proclamation,  as 
"  Protector  and  Defender  of  Magna  Charta,  and  the  Bill  of  Rights,"  concluding  with  the  words, 
"Given  at  London,  the  28th  day  of  July,  in  the  15th  year  of  the  tyrannical  reign  of  his  merciful 
majesty,  George  the  Third,  Defender  of  the  Romish  faith,  traitors,  and  murderers,  &c.,  Anno 
Domini,  1775."  It  was  a  scurrilous  publication,  but  it  had  a  powerful  effect  on  the  masses. 


638  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

plundering  and  foraging  expeditions  sent  out  by  Gage  were  gener 
ally  so  unsuccessful,*  that  the  commander  determined  to  make 
arrangements  for  the  removal  of  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants 
from  the  town.f  They  were  notified  that  the  town-major  would 
receive  the  names  of  those  who  wished  to  leave ;  at  the  same  time  it 
was  stipulated,  that  no  plate  should  be  carried  away,  and  that  no 
person  should  take  more  than  five  pounds  in  cash.  So  great  was  the 
prevailing  want,  that,  even  with  these  severe  restrictions  more  than 
two  thousand  names  were  handed  in.  Many  persons  of  property, 
who  knew  that  all  they  should  leave  behind  would  become  a  prey 
to  the  soldiery,  remained,  notwithstanding  they  would  gladly  have 
left.  Others  evaded  the  restrictions  in  various  ways.  Women 
quilted  silver  spoons  in  their  petticoats,  and  coin  was  smuggled  in 
the  same  way.  These  refugees  landed  principally  at  Chelsea ;  and 
as  they  were  scattered  over  the  country,  destitute  and  suffering, 
they  were  received  with  the  open  arms  of  hospitality  everywhere, 
except  a  few  tories  who  ventured  to  leave  the  city.  These  were 
treated  with  bitter  scorn,  as  the  worst  enemies  of  the  republican 
cause,  and  they  became  early  martyrs  for  opinion's  sake.  Others, 
wrho  remained,  felt  almost  happy  because  they  were  secure  from 
the  vengeance  of  those  whom  they  had  so  much  injured  by  their 
fratricidal  course.  One  of  these,  writing  from  Boston  at  that  time, 
said :  "  Although  we  are  deprived  of  the  comforts  and  luxuries,  and 
some  of  the  conveniences  of  life,  yet  our  being  in  a  place  of  safety 

*  On  one  occasion  success  attended  his  efforts.  A  small  British  fleet,  cruising  in  the  neighbor 
hood  of  New  London,  obtained  eighteen  hundred  sheep,  and  more  than  one  hundred  head  of  oxen. 
Frothingham,  in  his  "  Siege  of  Boston,"  quotes  a  letter  from  Gage  to  Lord  Dartmouth,  in  which 
this  important  fact  is  announced.  This  letter  was  published  in  London ;  and  the  "  Chronicle,"  the 
anti-ministerial  paper  in  that  city,  contained  the  following  impromptu,  the  next  day  : — 

"  In  days  of  yore  the  British  troops, 

Have  taken  warlike  kings  in  battle, 
But  now,  alas,  their  valor  droops, 
For  Gage  takes  naught  but  —  harmless  cattle. 

"  Britons,  with  grief  your  bosoms  strike  ! 

Your  faded  laurels  loudly  weep  ! 
Behold  your  heroes,  Quixote-like, 

Driving  a  timid  flock  of — sheep  I" 

t  A  census  made  at  the  close  of  July,  showed  the  number  of  residents  to  be  six  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  fifty-three,  exclusive  of  thirteen  thousand  six  hundred  troops,  and  their  dependent 
women  and  children. 


jET.  43.]  SKIRMISHES.  639 

lessens  the  want  of  those  conveniences ;  and  I  heartily  wish  you 
and  your  family  were  as  safe  as  we  are  here,  out  of  the  reach  of 
the  tory-hunters."  At  the  same  time  many  of  the  tories  in  Boston 
were  enrolled  into  the  king's  service,  wore  a  green  uniform,  and 
were  called  the  king's  volunteers,  under  the  command  of  Timothy 
Kuggles,  who  was  president  of  the  Stamp-act  Congress. 

The  hot  month  of  August  now  drew  to  a  close.  Few  military 
events  of  general  importance  occurred,  until  the  last  week  in  the 
month.  A  small  party  of  riflemen  had  cut  off  the  outposts  of  the 
British  beyond  Charlestown  Neck,  and  taken  a  prisoner ;  and  the 
enemy,  five  hundred  strong,  had  marched  over  the  Neck  on  Sunday, 
the  thirtieth,  constructed  a  breastwork  to  protect  their  guard  in 
future,  and  thoroughly  alarmed  the  American  carnp.  In  retaliation 
for  the  damage  done  by  these  riflemen,  a  British  floating-battery 
went  up  the  Charles  river,  and  sent  some  heavy  round-shot  into  the 
American  works;  and,  at  the  same  time,  a  party  marched  out 
toward  Roxbury,  drove  in  the  American  sentinels,  and  burned  a 
tavern.  A  skirmish  also  took  place  between  two  small  parties  near 
Charlestown  Neck.  These  simultaneous  firings  created  alarm  in 
Boston  as  wrell  as  in  the  American  camp.  The  wife  of  a  tory  in 
Boston,  whose  fears  magnified  events,  writing  to  a  friend,  said : 
"  We  were  aroused  about  one  o'clock,  on  the  morning  of  the  thirty- 
first,  by  the  most  dreadful  cannonading  I  ever  heard.  It  seemed 
to  be  a  general  attack  on  all  sides  around  us.  It  is  impossible  to 
convey  an  idea  how  terrible  it  wras  in  the  dead  of  night,  with  the 
apprehensions  which  naturally  seize  every  one,  either  of  the  enemy 
breaking  in,  or  the  town  being  set  on  fire.  It  appears  that  they 
attempted  again  to  cut  off  our  outposts,  upon  which  General  Howe 
attacked  their  intrenchments  with  cannon  and  bombs  on  that  side ; 
and  we  attacked  them  in  several  places  besides,  at  the  same  time, 
all  in  the  dark."* 

On  the  following  day  the  lighthouse,  which  had  been  partially 
rebuilt,  was  again  destroyed  by  a  party  of  three  hundred  continen 
tals,  under  Major  Tupper.  The  British,  expecting  an  attack,  were 

*  Frothingham's  "  Siege  of  Boston,"  page  230 


640  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

prepared  to  receive  them.  Major  Tupper  landed  in  good  order, 
marched  boldly  toward  the  lighthouse,  killed  about  a  dozen  of  the 
enemy,  and  took  the  remainder  prisoners.  He  then  demolished 
the  works,  but  when  he  was  ready  to  depart  he  found  his  vessels 
aground,  and  was  compelled  to  await  the  return  of  the  tide.  This 
dilemma  was  perceived  from  the  British  men-of-war,  and  boats  filled 
with  armed  men  were  sent  to  attack  the  Americans.  Quite  a  sharp 
skirmish  ensued,  when  the  shots  from  a  field-piece,  which  had  been 
planted  on  Nantasket  Point,  sunk  one  the  boats  of  the  enemy,  and 
killed  several  of  the  crew.  Major  Tupper  retired  with  his  whole 
party,  with  the  loss  of  only  one  man,  while  that  of  the  enemy,  in 
killed  and  prisoners,  amounted  to  fifty-three.  On  the  following  day 
Washington  noticed  this  brave  exploit  in  general  orders,  and  re 
marked,  that  he  doubted  not  "  but  the  continental  army  would  be 
as  famous  for  their  mercy  as  their  valor."  Small  skirmishes  con 
tinued,  solitary  shots  from  rifle  and  cannon  were  fired  with  some 
effect,  and  mutual  alarms  were  given. 

At  length  an  important  movement  was  made.  Washington  felt 
strong  enough  in  numbers,  discipline,  and  munitions  of  war,  toward 
the  close  of  August,  to  meet  the  enemy  fearlessly,  and  he  chal 
lenged  him  to  battle,  by  taking  possession  of  and  fortifying 
Ploughed  hill  (now  Mount  Benedict),  within  pointrblank  shot  of 
Bunker's  hill,  on  the  night  of  the  twenty-sixth.  For  some  time 
rumor  had  kept  the  continental  camp  uneasy  with  the  tale  that  the 
British  were  coming  out  to  storm  the  American  works ;  and  Wash 
ington  hoped  that  the  taking  of  this  new  and  menacing  position 
would  entice  them  to  the  trial. 

On  the  evening  of  the  twenty-seventh,  the  enemy  opened  a 
heavy  cannonade  upon  the  Americans  on  Ploughed  hill,  from 
Bunker's  hill,  and  a  ship  and  two  floating-batteries  in  the  Mystic 
river.  Two  Americans  lost  their  heads ;  but  the  cannonade  was 
not  returned,  except  upon  the  floating-batteries,  one  of  which  was 
thereby  sunk,  and  the  other  was  silenced.  The  firing  ceased  at 
night,  and  the  next  day  the  British  were  in  motion  on  Bunker's 
hill,  and  the  Americans,  in  their  new  position,  were  promptly 


Mr.  43.]  CHANCES  FOR  BRITISH  CONQUEST.  G41 

reinforced  by  five  thousand  men.  Washington  now  confidently 
expected  a  battle,  but  the  British  did  not  choose  to  accept  the 
challenge.  They  contented  themselves  with  bombarding  the  Amer 
ican  works  for  several  days,  when,  on  the  tenth  of  September,  their 
firing  ceased,  and  the  continentals  remained  possessors  of  Ploughed 
hill.  Soon  after  this,  Doctor  Franklin  wrote  to  his  friend  Doctor 
Priestley,  in  England,  and  said  : — 

"  Tell  our  dear,  good  friend,  Doctor  Price,  who  sometimes  has  his 
doubts  and  despondencies  about  our  firmness,  that  America  is  deter 
mined  and  unanimous ;  a  very  few  tories  and  placemen  excepted, 
who  will  probably  soon  export  themselves.  Britain,  at  the  expense 
of  three  millions,  has  killed  one  hundred  and  fifty  Yankees  this 
campaign,  which  is  twenty  thousand  pounds  a  head ;  and  at  Bun 
ker's  hill  she  gained  a  mile  of  ground,  half  of  which  she  lost  again 
by  our  taking  post  on  Ploughed  hill.  During  the  same  time  sixty 
thousand  children  have  been  born  in  America.  From  these  data 
his  mathematical  head  will  easily  calculate  the  time  and  expense 
necessary  to  kill  us  all  and  conquer  our  whole  country."* 

Let  us  now  leave  the  besieging  army,  for  awhile,  and  note  the 
progress  of  important  events  elsewhere,  under  the  control  of  Wash 
ington,  as  commander-in-chief. 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Franklin,  viii.,  160. 

41 


642  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTEE   LV. 

THE    IMPORTANCE    OF  CANADA EFFECT  OF  THE  ADDRESSES   OF  THE  CONTINENTAL 

CONGRESS EFFORTS    OF    SIR    GUY  CARLETON SECOND  ADDRESS  OF  CONGRESS 

ITS  EFFECTS  ON  THE  PEOPLE ALARM  OF  THE  BRITISH  AUTHORITIES TAM 
PERING  WITH  THE  PRIESTHOOD EVENTS  ON  LAKE  CHAMPLAIN NAVAL  ARMA 
MENT CAPTURE  OF  ST.  JOHN  BY  ARNOLD ALLEN'S  RETREAT SUM  OF  EX 
PLOITS  ON  THE  LAKE BRITISH  PREPARATIONS ARNOLD  FITS  OUT  A  FLOTILLA 

AT  CROWN  POINT ARNOLD'S  ACTIVITY HIS  CONDUCT COMMITTEE  OF  INVES 
TIGATION — ARNOLD'S  ANGER  AND  RESIGNATION  OF  OFFICE  —  PROPOSITION  TO 

INVADE  CANADA COLONEL  ALLEN'S  LETTER CAUTION  OF  THE  CIVIL  AUTHOR 
ITIES ALLEN  AND  WARNER  IN  PHILADELPHIA CHANGE  IN  PUBLIC  OPINION 

ALLEN  AND  WARNER  IN  NEW  YORK THEIR  RECEPTION  BY  THE  LEGISLATURE 

REGIMENT  OF  GREEN  MOUNTAIN    BOYS  TO  BE    RAISED INVASION    OF    CANADA 

AUTHORIZED  BY  CONGRESS  —  SCHUYLER  TAKES  COMMAND  OF  THE  NORTHERN 
ARMY. 

FROM  the  beginning  of  the  contest  the  province  of  Canada, 
inhabited  by  French  Roman  catholics,  had  been  an  object  of  great 
solicitude  to  both  parties.  The  inhabitants  there  had  been  affec 
tionately  appealed  to  by  the  colonists  below  the  St.  Lawrence,  and 
invited  to  join  them  in  seeking  a  redress  of  grievances  by  virtue 
of  reason  or  the  sword;  while  the  imperial  government,  by  en 
larging  the  civil,  political,  and  religious  privileges  of  the  people, 
had  created  an  enthusiastic  spirit  of  loyalty,  forgetful,  in  a  measure, 
of  past  national  animosities,  and  which  could  not  be  easily  seduced 
from  its  allegiance  to  the  British  crown  without  a  sure  hope  of 
advantage.  This  loyalty  had  been  cultivated  by  the  priests,  whose 
power  over  the  consciences  of  their  flocks  was  almost  omnipotent. 
It  had  been  strengthened  by  the  injudicious  use  of  a  little  diplomatic 
duplicity  in  the  addresses  put  forth  by  the  continental  Congress, 
in  1774. 

In  their  address  to  the  inhabitants  of  Canada,  the  Congress  said : 


JET.  43.]  DUPLICITY  OF  CONGRESS.  643 

"We  are  too  well  acquainted  with  the  liberality  of  sentiment 
distinguishing  your  nation,  to  imagine  that  difference  of  religion 
will  prejudice  you  against  a  hearty  amity  with  us.  You  know  that 
the  transcendent  nature  of  Freedom  elevates  those  who  unite  in  her 
cause  above  all  such  low-minded  infirmities.  The  Swiss  cantons 
furnish  a  memorable  proof  of  this  truth.  Their  union  is  composed 
of  Roman  catholic  and  protestant  states,  living  in  the  utmost  con 
cord  and  peace  with  one  another,  and  thereby  enabled,  ever  since  they 
bravely  vindicated  their  freedom,  to  defy  and  defeat  every  tyrant 
that  invaded  them."*  This  was  well  calculated  to  win  the  hearts 
of  the  Canadians.  But  only  five  days  before,  the  Congress  had 
said,  in  their  address  to  the  people  of  Great  Britain,  alluding  to  the 
Quebec  act:  "We  think  the  legislature  is  not  authorized  by  the 
constitution  to  establish  a  religion  fraught  with  sanguinary  tenets  in 
any  part  of  the  globe ;"  and  added :  "  Nor  can  we  suppress  our  as 
tonishment,  that  a  British  Parliament  should  ever  consent  to  estab 
lish  in  that  country  [Canada],  a  religion  that  has  deluged  your 
island  in  blood,  and  dispersed  impiety,  bigotry,  persecution,  murder, 
and  rebellion,  through  every  part  of  the  world."f  This  pleased 
protestant  England,  where  the  shout  of  "  No  popery  !"  was  daily 
heard,  and  the  effigies  of  the  Romish  pontiff  and  the  devil  were 
burned  together,  as  co-workers  in  iniquity. 

This  duplicity,  which  is  considered  a  negative  virtue  in  the  ethics 
of  diplomacy,  was  an  unfortunate  mistake,  and  the  government 
thereby  obtained  an  unlooked-for  advantage.  The  address  to  the 
inhabitants  of  Canada  was  translated  into  French,  and  attracted 
the  favorable  notice  of  many  leading  Canadians.  "The  decent 
manner  in  which  the  religious  matters  were  touched,"  wrote  an 
English  gentleman  from  Montreal,  in  March,  1775,  "and  the  en 
comiums  on  the  French  nation,  flattered  a  people  fond  of  compli 
ments.  They  begged  the  translator,  as  he  had  succeeded  so  well, 
to  try  his  hand  on  that  addressed  to  Great  Britain.  He  had  equal 
success  in  this,  and  read  his  performance  to  a  numerous  audience. 
But  when  he  came  to  that  part  which  treats  of  the  new  modelling 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  60.  t  Ibid,  i.,  41 


644  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  the  province,  draws  a  picture  of  the  catholic  religion,  and  Cana 
dian  manners,  they  could  not  contain  their  resentment,  nor  express 
it  but  in  broken  curses.  '  Oh  the  perfidious,  double-faced  Congress ! 
Let  us  bless  and  obey  our  benevolent  prince,  whose  humanity  is 
consistent,  and  extends  to  all  religions ;  let  us  abhor  all  who  would 
seduce  us  from  our  loyalty  by  acts  that  would  dishonor  a  Jesuit, 
and  whose  addresses,  like  their  resolves,  are  destructive  of  their  own 
objects.'" 

Sir  Guy  Carleton,  governor  of  Canada,  took  advantage  of  the 
feeling  created  by  the  two  addresses  of  the  Congress;  and  after 
the  capture  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  early  in  May  follow 
ing,  he  sought  by  every  means  in  his  power,  to  conciliate  the  inhab 
itants.  But  their  resentment  toward  "  the  perfidious  Congress,"  had 
soon  cooled.  In  their  hearts  lingered  the  smouldering  embers  of 
national  hatred  that  had  been  burning  for  a  thousand  years,  and 
which  could  not  be  easily  quenched ;  and  when  the  address  "  To 
the  Oppressed  Inhabitants  of  Canada,"  put  forth  by  the  continental 
Congress,  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  May,  reached  them  in  the  form 
of  an  excellent  translation,  multiplied  a  thousand  fold  by  the  printr 
ing-press,  the  old  fire  kindled,  and  many  a  Gallic  bosom  heaved  with 
irrepressible  aspirations  for  freedom  from  English  rule.  The  people 
were  disappointed  in  the  operations  of  the  Quebec  act.  Its  prom 
ises  had  not  been  fulfilled,  and  all  but  the  nobles  were  beginning  to 
regard  it  as  deceptive  if  not  tyrannical. 

The  effects  of  the  address  from  the  Congress  were  so  palpable, 
that  Governor  Carleton  feared  an  entire  disaffection  of  the  inhabi 
tants  to  the  royal  government.  He  was  no  longer  able  to  make 
any  favorable  impression  upon  the  great  body  of  the  Canadians  by 
appeals  to  their  loyalty,  and  he  endeavored  to  win  them  by  the 
power  of  religious  authority.  For  this  purpose,  Brand,  the  Roman 
catholic  bishop  of  Quebec,  was  approached  with  seductive  smiles, 
intended  to  entice  him  from  the  exalted  duties  of  a  Christian 
pastor,  to  engage  in  the  low  political  schemes  of  a  party  placeman. 
He  was  solicited  to  publish  a  mandement,  to  be  read  from  the  pulpits 
by  the  curates  in  time  of  divine  service,  and  to  exhort  his  people 


,E-r.  43.]  SCENES  ON  LAKE   CHAMPLAIN.  645 

to  take  up  arms  against  the  colonists.  The  conscientious  and 
consistent  prelate  refused  compliance.,  and  plainly  told  Sir  Guy, 
that  such  efforts  and  associations  would  not  only  stain  the  pur 
ity  of  his  sacred  character  as  a  Christian  pastor,  but  they  were 
derogatory  to  the  canons  of  the  Romish  church.  A  few  priests 
and  nobles  seconded  Carleton's  views,  but  their  influence  was  as 
feeble  as  the  claims  of  their  cause,  upon  the  masses,  who  were 
determined,  according  to  the  advice  of  their  bishop,  to  remain 
neutral. 

Now  was  the  auspicious  moment  for  the  colonists,  who  had 
secured  the  key  of  Canada  by  the  capture  of  the  lake  forts,  to 
have  made  an  easy  conquest  of  that  province,  in  accordance  with 
the  earnest  advice  of  Colonels  Ethan  Allen  and  Benedict  Arnold, 
then  in  that  region,  for  the  regular  troops  there  were  few,  the 
Indian  allies  from  the  Six  Nations,  under  Sir  John  Johnson,  had 
not  arrived,  and  the  people  were  passive. 

We  have  already  noticed  the  capture  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown 
Point,  early  in  May.  On  the  day  when  the  former  fort  was  taken, 
Colonel  Allen  sent  a  message  to  Captain  Remember  Baker,  one  of 
his  colleagues  in  the  violent  boundary  disputes  between  the  New 
Yorkers  and  the  people  of  the  New  Hampshire*  Grants,  asking  him 
to  join  him.  Baker  obeyed  the  summons ;  and  when  he  was  going 
up  the  lake  with  his  party,  he  met  two  small  boats,  with  British 
soldiers,  who  were  fleeing  from  outposts  at  Ticonderoga  to  St.  John, 
on  the  Sorel,  at  the  foot  of  the  lake,  with  intelligence  of  the  reduc 
tion  of  that  fortress,  and  to  solicit  reinforcements  for  the  garrison 
at  Crown  Point.  Baker  made  the  men  prisoners,  and  arrived  at 
Crown  Point  just  in  time,  on  the  twelfth,  to  assist  Colonel  Warner 
in  taking  possession  of  it.  Among  the  spoils  secured  by  that  vic 
tory,  were  a  hundred  and  fourteen  cannon,  of  which  only  sixty-one 
were  fit  for  service. 

A  new  scene  in  the  progressing  drama  now  opened.  Captain 
Herrick,  with  thirty  men,  had  been  sent'  from  Castleton,  when  the 
expedition  against  Ticonderoga  was  on  its  way,  with  instructions  to 
surprise  Skenesborough  (now  Whitehall),  at  the  head  of  Lake 


G4G  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Champlain,  and  seize  the  son  of  Major  Skene,  the  proprietor  (whose 
father  was  then  in  Europe),  and  any  vessels  that  might  be  found 
there.  The  surprise  was  so  complete,  that  no  blood  was  shed. 
Young  Skene,  twelve  negroes,  and  fifty  tenants,  became  prisoners, 
and  a  schooner  and  several  batteaux  fell  into  the  hands  of  the 
assailants.  With  their  prisoners  and  some  booty,  they  hastened 
down  the  lake  in  the  batteaux,  to  join  their  comrades  at  Ticon- 
deroga. 

Four  days  after  the  capture  of  the  fort  at  Ticonderoga,  about 
fifty  Massachusetts  men,  who  had  been  enlisted  in  compliance  with 
orders  given  by  Colonel  Arnold  while  on  his  way,  arrived  there. 
They  came  by  the  way  of  Skenesborough,  and  brought  with  them 
Major  Skene's  schooner.  Arnold  immediately  manned  that  vessel 
with  the  newly-arrived  recruits,  armed  it  with  some  of  the  guns  of 
the  fort,  and  sailed  down  the  lake  to  attack  St.  John,  on  the  Sorel. 
Colonel  Allen,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  men  in  batteaux,  started 
at  the  same  time  for  that  destination ;  but  Arnold's  schooner  out 
sailed  them,  and  toward  the  evening  of  the  seventeenth  of  May, 
he  approached  St.  John.  The  Sorel,  the  outlet  of  Lake  Champlain, 
being  narrow,  he  left  his  schooner,  and  with  thirty-five  men,  in  two 
batteaux,  he  pressed  forward.  At  six  o'clock  the  next  morning  he 
surprised  the  garrison  of  St.  John,  consisting  of  a  sergeant  and 
twelve  men ;  captured  a  king's  sloop  with  seven  men ;  destroyed 
five  batteaux ;  seized  four  others ;  put  on  board  of  the  sloop  some 
valuable  stores  from  the  fort,  and  within  two  hours  from  the  time 
of  his  arrival,  he  sailed  with  his  prisoners  and  booty,  for  Ticon 
deroga,  having  been  informed  that  large  reinforcements  for  the 
garrison  were  hourly  expected  from  Chamblee  and  Montreal.  He 
was  favored  with  an  auspicious  breeze,  for  the  wind  had  chopped 
round  from  south  to  north  just  as  he  had  secured  his  prizes. 

When  fifteen  miles  on  his  return  voyage,  he  met  Colonel  Allen 
and  his  flotilla  of  flatboats.  Arnold  was  on  the  king's  sloop.  There 
they  held  a  sort  of  council  of  war,  the  result  of  which  was,  that 
Arnold  proceeded  to  Ticonderoga,  and  Allen  went  on  to  St.  John, 
to  garrison  the  fort  with  a  hundred  men,  and  watch  the  movements 


IRr.  43.]  FIRST  CONTINENTAL  NAVY.  647 

of  the  enemy  there.  Allen  landed  at  St.  John  just  before  night, 
marched  about  a  mile  toward  Laprairie,  and  formed  his  men  in 
ambush  to  intercept  the  expected  reinforcements.  There  he  learned 
that  the  approaching  force  was  much  larger  than  his  own.  He  fell 
back  and  crossed  the  river.  In  that  position  he  was  attacked  early 
in  the  morning,  by  two  hundred  men,  when  he  fled  to  his  boats 
and  escaped  to  Ticonderoga,  with  the  loss  of  only  three  companions, 
who  were  made  prisoners.  Thus  ended  a  series  of  bold  exploits. 
Within  eight  days  the  strong  fortresses  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown 
Point,  with  all  their  dependencies  upon  the  lake,  were  wrested  from 
the  British  by  the  bold,  half-disciplined  provincials,  without  the  loss 
of  blood  or  treasure ;  and  the  little  fleet  of  the  enemy  on  the  lake 
— his  only  strength  left — was  captured  or  destroyed  in  a  daj^. 

These  events  called  forth  all  the  efforts  of  Governor  Carleton, 
and  a  reinforcement  of  more  than  four  hundred  British  soldiers, 
Canadians,  and  Indians,  were  sent  to  St.  John.  He  also  prepared 
to  send  some  small  water  craft  over  from  Montreal,  and  from 
Chamblee,  to  be  armed  and  manned  at  St.  John,  preparatory  to  an 
expedition  up  the  lake  to  recapture  Crown  Point  and  Ticonderoga. 
Intelligence  of  these  preparations  delighted  Arnold,  for  he  saw  an 
opportunity  to  sever  the  tether  of  connection  with  Allen,  which  so 
chafed  his  ambitious  spirit.  He  perceived  that  naval  preparations 
would  be  necessary  to  meet  the  invader,  and  having  had  considerable 
experience  at  sea  in  early  life,  he  assumed  the  right  to  command 
whatever  flotilla  might  be  fitted  out  by  the  Americans,  on  the  lake. 
His  right  was  not  disputed,  and  he  proceeded  vigorously  in  arming 
and  manning  Skene's  schooner,  the  king's  sloop,  and  a  small  number 
of  batteaux.  In  the  former  he  mounted  four  carriage-guns  and 
eight  swivels,  and  in  the  latter  six  carriage-guns  and  twelve  swivels. 
He  then  appointed  his  subordinate  officers ;  and,  as  commodore  of 
the  first  continental  navy,  he  proceeded,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty 
men,  to  Crown  Point,  to  await  the  coming  of  the  foe.  There,  too, 
he  assumed  the  command  of  the  fort,  and  became  a  sort  of  am 
phibious  leader,  ready  to  fight  on  land  or  water. 

Always  active  and  ambitious,  Colonel  Arnold  was  not  idle  for  a 


648  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY. 

moment,  while  waiting  the  expected  approach  of  the  enemy.  He 
busied  himself  in  sending  off  the  ordnance  from  Crown  Point  to 
the  army  at  Cambridge,  and  in  despatching  emissaries  to  Montreal 
and  the  Caughnawagas  near  to  ascertain  the  feelings  and  intentions 
of  the  Canadians  and  Indians,  and  to  gain  intelligence  of  the  actual 
force  under  Carle  ton,  and  the  nature  of  his  preparations.  A  little 
later,  he  wrote  to  the  continental  Congress  proposing  a  plan  of 
operations,  whereby,  he  confidently  believed,  the  whole  of  Canada 
might  be  conquered  by  two  thousand  men.  He  asserted  that 
persons  in  Montreal  had  agreed  to  open  the  gates  when  a  strong 
continental  force  should  appear  before  the  city ;  assured  the  Con 
gress  that  Carleton  could  not  muster  more  than  live  hundred  and 
fifty  effective  men,  and  offered  to  lead  an  expedition  to  the  St.  Law 
rence,  and  hold  himself  responsible  for  the  consequences.  In  a 
postscript  to  this  letter,  he  added :  "  In  order  to  give  satisfaction  to 
the  different  colonies,  I  propose  that  Colonel  Hinman's  regiment, 
now  on  their  march  from  Connecticut  to  Ticonderoga,  should  form 
part  of  the  army  —  say  one  thousand  men;  five  hundred  men  to 
be  sent  from  New  York,  five  hundred  of  Colonel  Arnold's  regiment, 
including  the  seamen  and  manners  on  board  the  vessels  (no  Green- 
Mountain  Boys*)." 

Colonel  Hinman  arrived  with  about  four  hundred  Connecticut 
troops,  a  few  days  after  the  date  of  this  letter,  having  been  ap 
pointed  by  Governor  Trumbull  to  the  command  of  the  lake  forts, 
in  pursuance  of  the  expressed  willingness  of  Massachusetts  to  allow 
that  colony  all  the  honor  of  the  conquest,  and  to  withhold  all  inter 
ference  in  future  operations  in  that  quarter.  Difficulties  imme 
diately  arose  between  Hinman  and  Arnold,  the  latter  refusing  to 
give  up  the  command  of  either  post,  still  claiming  to  be  the  chief, 
by  virtue  of  his  commission  from  the  Massachusetts  authorities. 
Everything  pertaining  to  authority  and  discipline  was  thus  thrown 

*  Arnold  disliked  Allen  and  his  Green-Mountain  Boys  from  the  beginning.  On  the  day  when 
Fort  Ticonderoga  was  taken,  he  wrote  to  the  Massachusetts  committee  of  safety,  saying:  "  Colonel 
Allen  is  a  proper  man  to  head  his  own  wild  people,  but  entirely  unacquainted  with  military  service, 
and  as  I  am  the  only  person  who  has  been  legally  authorized  to  take  possession  of  this  place,  I  am 
determined  to  insist  on  my  right,"  &c.  —  See  American  Archives,  ii.,  557. 


JEx.  43.]  THE  WRATH  OF  ARNOLD.  649 

into  confusion,  and  Allen  and  Warner,  with  a  greater  portion  of 
the  Green-Mountain  Boys  returned  home,  the  term  of  the  enlist 
ment  of  the  latter  having  expired. 

While  Arnold  was  exhibiting  these  arrogant  assumptions,  and 
meditating  glorious  schemes  for  the  future ;  and  while  gorgeous 
dreams  of  personal  aggrandizement  were  created  by  his  fancy, 
measures  that  would  humble  his  pride,  and  cause  those  dreams 
to  dissolve  like  vapor,  were  in  preparation.  Full  details  of  all 
the  proceedings  on  the  lake  had  been  sent  by  messengers  to  the 
legislatures  of  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut,  and  the  conduct  of 
Arnold,  who  was  haughty  and  quarrelsome,  was  portrayed  in  a  very 
unfavorable  light.  These  defects  in  his  character — the  chief  causes 
of  his  subsequent  degradation — hid  from  view  and  sympath}r  his 
patriotic  zeal  and  rare  energy ;  and  while  his  faults  were  magnified, 
his  virtues  were  overlooked.  The  confidence  of  the  Massachusetts 
provincial  Congress  in  Arnold  was  partially  withdrawn,  and  a  com 
mittee  of  inquiry  was  appointed  to  proceed  to  Lake  Champlain, 
and  investigate  charges  made  against  their  colonel. 

Arnold  was  at  Crown  Point  when  the  committee  arrived.  Unsus 
picious  of  the  nature  of  their  errand,  he  received  them  with  great 
courtesy  and  cheerfulness,  and  was  enthusiastic  in  his  discourses 
respecting  his  plans  for  the  future,  and  his  expected  victories. 
When  he  was  informed  of  the  object  of  their  visit,  his  indignation 
was  fiercely  aroused.  Conscious  of  having  performed  good  ser 
vice,  he  had  expected  their  approbation;  now  that  they  stood 
before  him  as  inquisitors,  on  exparte  accusations,  his  courtesy 
was  changed  to  expressions  of  scorn.  He  demanded  a  sight  of 
their  instructions,  and  when  he  perceived  that,  after  acquainting 
themselves  with  his  "  spirit,  capacity,  and  conduct,"  they  were  au 
thorized  to  order  his  return  to  Massachusetts  to  give  a  full  account 
of  himself,  if  they  should  think  proper ;  and  that  in  the  event  of  his 
remaining,  he  was  to  be  subservient  to  Colonel  Hinman,  who  had 
been  ordered  from  Connecticut  to  take  command  at  Ticonderoga,  he 
became  furious.  He  declared,  with  terrible  oaths,  that  he  would  be 
second  to  no  man ;  and  throwing  up  his  commission,  he  discharged 


G50  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

his  men  on  the  spot.  These  became  indignant  in  turn.  Some  of 
them  refused  to  serve  under  any  other  leader,  and  others  threat 
ened  to  sail  for  St.  John,  independent  of  all  authority.  The  storm 
of  passion  was  at  length  allayed  by  the  judicious  management  of 
the  committee,  and  Arnold  returned  to  Cambridge,  uttering  loud 
complaints  of  ill  usage  by  the  provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts. 
Colonel  Allen,  also  ambitious  of  personal  renown,  and  filled  with 
patriotic  zeal,  had,  meanwhile,  addressed  a  characteristic  letter  to 
the  provincial  Congress  of  New  York,  several  days  previous  to  the 
date  of  Arnold's  to  the  continental  Congress.  It  was  written  at 
Crown  Point,  on  the  second  of  June.  After  referring  to  what 
had  already  been  accomplished  on  the  lake,  he  said :  "  If  in  those 
achievements  there  be  anything  honorary,  the  subjects  of  your 
government,  namely,  the  New  Hampshire  settlers,  are  justly  enti 
tled  to  a  large  share,  as  they  had  a  great  majority  of  the  soldiery, 
as  well  as  the  command  in  making  those  acquisitions ;  and,  as  you 
justify  and  approve  the  same,  I  expect  you  already  have,  or  soon 
will  lay  before  the  grand  continental  Congress  the  great  disadvan 
tage  it  must  inevitably  be  to  the  colonies  to  evacuate  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  and  give  up  to  the  enemies  of  our  country  those  invaluable 
acquisitions,  the  key  either  of  Canada  or  of  our  own  country, 
according  to  which  party  holds  the  same  in  possession,  and  makes  a 
proper  improvement  of  it.  The-  key  is  ours,  as  yet,  and  provided 
the  colonies  would  suddenly  push  an  army  of  two  or  three  thousand 
men  into  Canada,  they  might  make  a  conquest  of  all  that  would 
oppose  them,  in  the  extensive  province  of  Quebec,  unless  reinforce 
ments  from  England  should  prevent  it.  Such  a  division  would 
weaken  General  Gage,  or  insure  us  Canada.  I  wish  to  God,  Amer 
ica  would,  at  this  critical  juncture,  exert  herself  agreeably  to  the 
indignity  offered  her  by  a  tyrannical  ministry.  She  might  rise  on 
eagle's  wings,  and  mount  up  to  glory,  freedom,  and  immortal  honor, 
if  she  did  but  know  and  exert  her  strength.  Fame  is  now  hover 
ing  over  her  head.  A  vast  continent  must  now  sink  to  slavery, 
poverty,  horror,  and  bondage,  or  rise  to  unconquerable  freedom, 
immense  wealth,  inexpressible  felicity,  and  immortal  fame.  I  would 


fa?.  43.]  PROPOSED  INVASION  OF  CANADA.  651 

lay  my  life  on  it,  that  with  fifteen  hundred  men  I  could  take  Mon 
treal.  Provided  I  could  be  thus  furnished,  and  if  an  army  could 
take  the  field,  it  would  be  no  insuperable  difficulty  to  take  Quebec. 

"  This  object  should  be  pursued,  though  it  should  take  ten  thou 
sand  men,  for  England  can  not  spare  but  a  certain  number  of  her 
troops ;  nay,  she  has  but  a  small  number  that  are  disciplined,  and 
it  is  long  as  it  is  broad,  the  more  that  are  sent  to  Quebec,  the  less 
they  can  send  to  Boston,  or  any  other  part  of  the  continent.  And 
there  will  be  this  unspeakable  advantage  in  directing  the  war  into 
Canada,  that,  instead  of  turning  the  Canadians  and  Indians  against 
us,  as  is  wrongly  suggested  by  many,  it  would  unavoidably  attach 
and  connect  them  to  our  interest.  Our  friends  in  Canada  can  never 
help  us,  until  we  first  help  them,  except  in  a  passive  or  inactive 
manner.  There  are  now  about  seven  hundred  regular  troops  in 
Canada." 

Colonel  Allen  then  suggested  the  propriety  of  making  a  stand  at 
the  low,  fortified  island  of  Nuts  (Isle  aux  Noix),  about  fifteen  miles 
above  St.  John,  if  an  immediate  invasion  of  Canada  should  be  con 
sidered  premature.  The  chief  advantage  of  such  a  measure,  he 
said,  would  be  better  to  secure  the  northern  frontier,  and  the  friend 
ship  and  co-operation  of  the  Indians,  and  to  allow  necessary  incur 
sions  into  Canada.  He  also  proposed  the  raising  of  a  regiment  of 
rangers,  which,  he  averred,  he  could  easily  do  himself;  and  con 
cluded  by  saying :  "  Probably  you  may  think  this  an  impertinent 
proposal.  It  is  truly  the  first  favor  I  ever  asked  of  the  govern 
ment,  and,  if  granted,  I  shall  be  zealously  ambitious  to  conduct  for 
the  best  good  of  my  country,  and  the  honor  of  the  government." 
He  addressed  a  similar  letter  to  Governor  Trumbull. 

This  was  the  first  distinctly  uttered  proposition  to  invade  Canada. 
No  one  had  yet  ventured  to  suggest  a  movement  so  bold  and  haz 
ardous.  In  fact,  the  capture  of  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  as 
we  have  seen,  startled  the  continental  Congress  and  the  local  au 
thorities  of  New  York.  While  they  approved  of  the  act,  they 
were  perplexed  to  know  what  to  do  with  their  prizes,  or  what 
future  movements  to  make  in  that  quarter.  When  Allen  applied 


G5-3  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

to  the  Albany  committee  for  men  and  provisions,  to  enable  him  to 
maintain  his  conquests,  that  committee,  fearing  the  horrors  of  civil 
war  on  the  northern  frontier  of  their  province,  asked  the  New  York 
committee  for  advice.  The  latter,  equally  perplexed  and  cautious, 
referred  the  subject  to  the  continental  Congress;  and  we  have 
already  seen  how  cautiously  that  body  proceeded  in  the  matter  on 
the  first  of  June,  in  deprecating  any  attempt  to  invade  Canada. 

If  these  actions  and  expressions  of  the  representatives  of  the 
people  reflected  the  sentiments  of  their  constituents,  Colonel  Allen's 
letter  must  have  appeared  bold  and  injudicious,  if  not  preposterous. 
But  a  change  in  the  opinions  of  the  public  councils  soon  appeared, 
and  the  wisdom  and  far-seeing  sagacity  of  the  leader  of  the  Green- 
Mountain  Boys  were  speedily  made  manifest,  but  not  until  it  was  too 
late  to  second  his  suggestions  to  the  best  advantage.  This  change 
was  wrought  partly  by  advices  respecting  hostile  preparations  in 
Canada,  but  chiefly  by  the  representations  of  Colonels  Allen  and 
Warner,  who,  on  retiring  from  Ticonderoga,  had  proceeded  directly 
to  Philadelphia,  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  pay  for  their  dis 
banded  soldiers,  and  to  solicit  authority  to  raise  a  new  regiment  in 
the  New  Hampshire  Grants. 

The  appearance  of  the  heroes  of  the  North  produced  quite  a 
sensation  in  Philadelphia.  They  were  introduced  upon  the  floor 
of  Congress  and  permitted  to  make  their  communications  to  that 
body  orally.  Allen  talked  long  and  earnestly  in  his  quaint  style 
and  slow-spoken  sentences,  respecting  affairs  on  the  northern  fron 
tier,  the  dangers  to  be  apprehended  when  the  British  regulars  in 
Canada  should  be  reinforced,  and  the  great  necessity  for  an  imme 
diate  invasion  of  the  province,  while  the  arm  of  the  government 
was  weak,  and  the  friendship  of  the  people  for  the  revolted  colo 
nists  was  undoubted.  His  words  had  a  powerful  effect ;  and  it  is  a 
notable  fact,  that  on  the  very  day  when  Colonel  Arnold's  letter,  in 
which  he  expressed  an  ill-natured  desire  that  "  no  Green-Mountain 
Boys"  should  be  employed  in  invading  Canada,  was  received,*  the 

*  Arnold  kept  up  a  show  of  friendship  toward  Allen,  while  he  secretly  disliked  him  ;  and  that 
officer  was  actually  the  bearer  of  this  very  letter  of  Arnold's  to  Congress,  in  which  the  Green  Moun- 


JE-v.  43.]  OUTLAWS  BECOME  PATRIOTS.  653 

continental  Congress  "Resolved,  That  it  be  recommended  to  the  con 
vention  of  New  York,  that  they,  consulting  with  General  Schuyler, 
employ  in  the  army  to  be  raised  for  the  defence  of  America,  those 
called  Green-Mountain  Boys,  under  such  officers  as  the  said  G-reeiv- 
Mountain  Boys  shall  choose."  Their  wishes  in  regard  to  pay  were 
also  complied  with,  and  Allen  and  Warner,  with  light  hearts,  set 
off  for  New  York,  to  present  themselves  before  the  provincial  Con 
gress. 

We  have  mentioned  the  difficulties  between  the  authorities  of 
the  province  of  New  York  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  New  Hamp 
shire  Grants,  which  had  continued  several  years  before  the  breaking 
out  of  the  Revolution,  and  in  which  both  Allen  and  Warner  were  ac 
tive  participants.*  They  were  outlawed  by  an  act  of  the  New  York 
legislature,  and  that  attainder  had  not  been  wiped  out  by  a  repeal 
of  the  act.  This  fact  embarrassed  the  provincial  Congress  (the 
successor  of  the  legislature),  when  Allen  and  Warner  presented 
themselves  at  the  door  and  asked  for  admission.  These  outlaws 
now  came  as  patriots  and  heroes,  engaged  in  the  same  cause  with 
these  legislators,  and  honored  by  the  continental  Congress.  But 
there  were  members  among  those  legislators  who  had  taken  a  very 
active  part,  personally,  in  the  controversy,  and  they  were  unwilling 
to  give  their  old  enemies  a  friendly  greeting.  Their  prejudices, 
and  the  scruples  of  others  who  could  not  recognize  the  propriety 
of  holding  public  conference  with  men  whom  the  law  of  the  land 
had  declared  to  be  rioters  and  felons,  produced  a  strong  opposition 
to  their  admission  to  the  hall.  Debates  upon  the  subject  ran  high, 
when  Captain  Sears,  the  stanch  leader  of  the  Sons  of  Liberty,  and 
then  a  very  influential  man  in  New  York,  arose  and  moved  "  that 
Ethan  Allen  be  admitted  to  the  floor  of  the  house."  It  was  carried 
by  a  large  majority,  as  was  also  a  similar  one  in  regard  to  Warner. 
The  old  feud  was  instantly  healed ;  and  the  New  York  assembly 

tain  Boys  were  so  unfavorably  alluded  to.  The  name  of  the  writer  was  cautiously  suppressed  in 
the  journals,  in  which  the  record  appears  as  follows  :  "A  letter  from  Crown  Point,  dated  June  10th, 
was  laid  before  the  Congress,  and  read.  Information  being  given,  that  the  two  officers  who  brought 
the  letter  were  at  the  door,  and  had  some  things  of  importance  to  communicate ;  Ordered,  That  they 
be  introduced,  and  they  were  introduced."  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  117. 
*  See  note  on  page  523. 


654  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

decreed  that  a  regiment  of  Green-Mountain  Boys,  five  hundred 
strong,  should  be  raised.  The  matter  was  then  referred  to  General 
Schuyler,  who  proclaimed  the  resolution  in  the  New  Hampshire 
Grants.  Allen,  grateful  for  this  action,  wrote  a  letter  of  thanks  to 
the  provincial  Congress. — "When  I  reflect  on  the  unhappy  contro 
versy,"  he  said,  "which  has  many  years  subsisted  between  the 
government  of  New  York  and  the  settlers  on  the  New  Hampshire 
Grants,  and  also  contemplate  the  friendship  and  union  that  have 
lately  taken  place,  in  making  a  united  resistance  against  ministerial 
vengeance  and  slavery,  I  can  not  but  indulge  fond  hopes  of  a  recon 
ciliation.  To  promote  this  salutary  end  I  shall  contribute  my  in 
fluence,  assuring  you,  that  your  respectful  treatment,  not  only  to 
Mr.  Warner  and  myself,  but  to  the  Green-Mountain  Boys  in  general, 
in  forming  them  into  a  battalion,  is  by  them  duly  regarded ;  and  I 
will  be  responsible,  that  they  will  reciprocate  this  favor  by  boldly 
hazarding  their  lives,  if  need  be,  in  the  common  cause  of  America." 
The  change  in  the  views  of  the  continental  Congress  was  imme 
diately  visible.  On  the  twenty-seventh  of  June,  that  body,  by 
unanimous  resolution,  ordered  General  Schuyler,  if  he  should  "  find 
it  practicable,  and  not  disagreeable  to  the  Canadians,  immediately 
to  take  possession  of  St.  John  and  Montreal,  and  pursue  such  other 
measures  in  Canada  as  might  have  a  tendency  to  promote  the 
peace  and  security  of  these  provinces."  These  were  mild  and 
cautious  words,  but  they  were  well  understood  as  an  express  order 
for  the  invasion  of  Canada ;  and  on  the  eighteenth  of  July,  General 
Schuyler  arrived  at  Ticonderoga,  and  took  formal  command  of  the 
northern  army. 


JET.  43.1  TRYON  COUNTY.  655 


CHAPTER  LVI. 

STATE  OF  AFFAIRS  IN  THE  NORTHERN    DEPARTMENT TRTON  COUNTY — SCHUYLER 

AT    TICONDEROGA PICTURE    OF    THE     ARMY TARDINESS    OF    THE     GATHERING 

TROOPS GENERAL    MONTGOMERY ALLEN  AND  THE  GREEN-MOUNTAIN    BOYS 

ALLEN    ACCEPTED    AS    A    VOLUNTEER AGENT     SENT    TO    CANADA SCHUYLER's 

COMPLAINTS MAJOR  BROWN'S  REPORT PREPARATIONS  TO  INVADE  CANADA 

CONFERENCE  WITH  INDIANS WASHINGTON'S  PLAN MOVEMENTS  OF  MONT 
GOMERY ILLNESS  OF  SCHUYLER HEADQUARTERS  AT  ISLE  AUX  NOIX AD 
DRESS  TO  THE  CANADIANS ADVANCE  TOWARD  ST.  JOHN. 

EVERYTHING  connected  with  the  republican  cause  in  northern  New 
York,  wore  a  dark  aspect  when  General  Schuyler  took  formal  com 
mand  of  the  army  of  the  North,  on  the  eighteenth  day  of  July. 
When  on  the  point  of  leaving  Saratoga  for  Ticonderoga,  he  received 
letters  from  Tryon  county  that  were  truly  alarming.  That  county 
was  the  almost  undefined  region  of  New  York  beyond  the  western 
boundary  of  the  present  Schenectady  county,  and  included  the 
Mohawk,  Schoharie,  and  Cherry  valley  settlements,  and  the  country 
of  the  Six  Nations.  For  some  time,  Guy  Johnson,  in  the  absence 
of  Sir  John,  who  had  gone  to  Canada,  had  been  holding  councils 
with  tribes  of  this  confederacy,  stirring  them  up  to  make  war  upon 
the  disloyal  white  people ;  and  now  intelligence  reached  General 
Schuyler  that  full  eight  hundred  savages  were  about  to  coalesce 
with  the  Scotch  Highlanders  already  mentioned,  and  other  tories, 
in  making  forays  upon  the  republican  settlers,  and  in  cutting  off 
supplies  for  the  army  on  Lake  Champlain. 

This  threatening  danger  detained  General  Schuyler  for  two  or 
three  days,  when  a  letter  from  the  committee  of  safety  at  Albany, 
assured  him  that  many  reports  were  exaggerations,  and  he  pro 
ceeded  to  Ticonderoga.  There  he  found  everything  in  a  wretched 
condition.  The  supplies  were  meagre,  and  the  army  but  a  handful. 


656  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

The  garrison,  under  Colonel  Hinman,  was  about  twelve  hundred 
strong,  consisting  chiefly  of  Connecticut  troops,  some  New  York 
volunteers,  and  a  few  Green-Mountain  Boys.*  These  were  quite 
undisciplined,  and  the  Connecticut  troops  especially,  were  extremely 
insubordinate.  •  Indeed  Colonel  Hinman  appeared  to  be  only  nomi 
nally  commander  of  the  garrison,  for  very  few  of  his  men  seemed 
disposed  to  obey  him.  Schuyler  was  a  thorough  disciplinarian, 
naturally  authoritative,  and  precise  in  all  his  arrangements,  and  the 
utterly  confused  state  of  affairs  were  immediately  apparent  and 
greatly  annoying  to  him.  On  the  day  of  his  arrival  at  Ticonderoga 
he  wrote  to  General  Washington,  and  in  a  few  words  he  gave  a 
graphic  picture  of  the  state  of  things  in  that  section. 

"  You  will  expect,"  General  Schuyler  wrote,  "  that  I  should  say 
something  about  this  place  and  the  troops  here.  Not  one  earthly 
thing  for  offence  or  defence  has  been  done.  The  commanding 
officer  had  no  orders ;  he  only  came  to  reinforce  the  garrison,  and 
he  expected  the  general.  (But  this,  my  dear  general,  as  well  as 
what  follows  in  this  paragraph,  I  pray  may  be  entre  nous,  for  reasons 
I  need  not  suggest.)  About  ten  last  night  I  arrived  at  the  landing- 
place,  the  north  end  of  Lake  George ;  a  post  occupied  by  a  captain 
and  one  hundred  men.  A  sentinel,  on  being  informed  that  I  was 
in  the  boat,  quitted  his  post  to  go  and  awake  the  guard,  consisting 
of  three  men,  in  which  he  had  no  success.  I  walked  up  and  came 
to  another,  a  sergeant's  guard.  Here  the  sentinel  challenged,  but 
suffered  me  to  come  up  to  him ;  the  whole  guard,  like  the  first,  in 
soundest  sleep.  With  a  penknife,  only,  I  could  have  cut  off  both 
guards,  and  then  have  set  fire  to  the  block-house,  destroyed  the 
stores,  and  starved  the  people  here.  At  this  post  I  had  pointedly 
recommended  vigilance  and  care,  as  all  stores  for  Fort  George  must, 
necessarily,  be  landed  there.  But  I  hope  to  get  the  better  of  this 

*  On  the  fifteenth,  General  Schuyler  sent  to  Washington  a  return  of  the  troops  in  the  colony  of 
New  York,  which  were  under  his  command.  It  was  acknowledged  to  be  imperfect,  but  was  the 
best  he  could  prepare  from  the  reports  he  had  received.  It  showed  the  whole  number  to  be  less 
than  twenty-eight  hundred,  fit  for  duty.  Of  these,  there  were  fifteen  hundred  Connecticut  troops 
with  General  Wooster  on  the  seaboard ;  nine  hundred  and  seventy-three  from  the  same  colony, 
under  Colonel  Hinman,  at  Ticonderoga,  Crown  Point,  and  Fort  George ;  and  about  two  hundred 
Massachusetts  troops  at  these  posts 


JET.  43.]  CONDITION  OF  THE  ARMY.  657 

inattention.  The  officers  and  men  are  all  good-looking  people,  and 
decent  in  their  deportment,  and  I  really  believe  will  make  good 
soldiers,  as  soon  I  can  get  the  better  of  this  nonchalance  of  theirs. 
Bravery,  I  believe,  they  are  far  from  wanting."* 

Washington  could  fully  sympathize  with  General  Schuyler,  for 
his  own  experience  at  Cambridge,  gave  him  a  keen  perception  of 
the  feelings  of  his  friend.  "  I  can  easily  judge  of  your  difficulties 
in  introducing  order  arid  discipline  into  troops,  who  have,  from 
their  infancy,  imbibed  ideas  of  the  most  contrary  kind,"  he  wrote 
to  Schuyler  on  the  twenty-eighth.  "  It  would  be  far  beyond  the 
compass  of  a  letter,  for  me  to  describe  the  situation  of  things  here 
on  my  arrival.  Perhaps  you  will  only  be  able  to  judge  of  it  from 
my  assuring  you,  that  mine  must  be  a  portrait  at  full  length,  of 
what  you  have  had  in  miniature.  Confusion  and  discord  reigned  in 
every  department,  which,  in  a  little  time,  must  have  ended  either 
in  the  separation  of  the  army,  or  fatal  contests  with  one  another.... 
However,  we  mend  every  day,  and  I  flatter  myself,  that  in  a  little 
time  we  shall  work  up  these  raw  materials  into  a  good  manufacture. 
I  must  recommend  to  you,  what  I  endeavor  to  practise  myself, 
patience  and  perseverance." 

This  communication  from  the  commander-in-chief  was  consoling, 
and  on  the  sixth  of  August,  Schuyler  thanked  him  for  his  "  very 
kind  and  polite  letter." — "  I  foresaw,"  he  wrote,  "  that  you  would 
have  an  Herculean  labor,  in  order  to  introduce  that  proper  spirit 
of  discipline  and  subordination,  which  is  the  very  soul  of  an  army ;" 
and  added — "I  can  easily  conceive  that  my  difficulties  are  only  a 
faint  semblance  of  yours.  Yes,  my  general,  I  will  strive  to  copy 
your  bright  example,  and  patiently  and  steadily  persevere  in  that 
line  which  only  can  promise  the  wished-for  reformation." 

In  many  respects,  these  eminent  men  were  alike,  and  neither  of 
them  allowed  small  matters  to  disturb  their  equanimity,  or  to 
become  obstacles  in  their  path  of  duty.  The  character  of  the 
materials  out  of  which  Schuyler  was  compelled  to  form  an  invading 
army  did  not  discourage  him,  but  he  became  exceedingly  impatient 

*  Schuyler's  MS.  Letter  Books. 

42 


653  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

because  of  the  tardiness  of  the  gathering  of  the  troops  destined  for 
Canada.  Those  of  Connecticut,  under  General  Wooster,  who  had 
been  for  several  weeks  in  the  vicinity  of  New  York,  and  on  Long 
Island,  were  very  tardy  in  marching  northward,  while  the  New  York 
levies  were  quite  as  slow  in  their  movements.  General  Montgom 
ery,  Schuyler's  lieutenant,  was  at  Albany,  the  appointed  place  of 
rendezvous,  at  the  middle  of  July,  and  yet  it  was  the  twenty-first 
of  August  before  he  was  able  to  reach  Ticonderoga  with  the  gath 
ered  troops.  There  had  been  equal  tardiness  in  the  formation  of 
the  regiment  of  Green-Mountain  Boys ;  and  the  restless  Ethan 
Allen,  in  a  letter  to  Governor  Trumbull,  expressed  that  impatience, 
while  it  betrayed  his  ambition.  "  Were  it  not,"  he  wrote,  "  that  the 
grand  continental  Congress  had  totally  incorporated  the  Green- 
Mountain  Boys  into  a  battalion  under  certain  regulations  and  com 
mand,  I  would  forthwith  advance  them  into  Canada,  and  invest 
Montreal,  exclusive  of  any  help  from  the  colonies ;  though  under 
present  circumstances  I  would  not,  for  my  right  arm,  act  without 
or  contrary  to  order.  If  my  fond  zeal  for  reducing  the  king's 
fortresses,  or  destroying  or  imprisoning  his  troops  in  Canada  be  the 
result  of  enthusiasm,  I  hope  and  expect  the  wisdom  of  the  conti 
nent  will  treat  it  as  such ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  if  it  proceed 
from  sound  policy,  that  the  plan  will  be  adopted."* 

At  that  time  a  feud  had  separated  Colonels  Allen  and  Warner, 
and  their  respective  friends  became  antagonistic  partisans.  This 
feud  caused  some  delay  in  the  enlistments  of  the  Green-Mountain 
Boys,  and  their  election  of  officers  did  not  take  place  until  the 
twenty-seventh  of  July.  Allen  had  felt  no  doubt  of  his  being 
chosen  the  commander  of  the  regiment,  but  a  change  in  the  public 
feeling  appeared.  Grave  men  openly  expressed  doubts  of  his  dis 
cretion  ;  and  at  the  election,  he  was  entirely  passed  by.  They 
omitted  to  elect  a  colonel,  but  gave  Warner  their  suffrages  as  lieu- 
tenani>colonel  of  the  regiment,  much  to  the  disappointment  and 
mortification  of  Allen,  who,  in  a  letter  to  Governor  Trumbull,  soon 
afterward,  said :  "  Notwithstanding  my  zeal  and  success  in  my  coun- 

*  American  Archives,  ii.,  1649. 


M-r.  43.]          COLONEL  ALLEN  A  VOLUNTEER.  659 

try's  cause,  the  old  farmers  in  the  New  Hampshire  Grants,  who  do 
not  incline  to  go  to  war,  have  met  in  a  committee-meeting,  and  in 
their  "nomination  of  officers  for  the  regiment  of  Green-Mountain 
Boys,  have  wholly  omitted  me."*  When  this  decision  wras  made 
known  to  General  Montgomery,  that  officer  communicated  it  to 
General  Schuyler,  saying:  "it  is  a  change  which  will  be  very 
acceptable  to  our  convention.''^  Allen,  the  bold  outlaw,  whose 
sins  against  the  authorities  of  New  York  were  many  and  heinous 
in  their  eyes,  was  very  unpopular  with  the  New  York  convention, 
notwithstanding  its  recent  friendly  reception  of  that  officer  and 
Colonel  Warner.  Perhaps  this  consideration  had  much  to  do  with 
the  result  of  the  election. 

This  neglect  did  not  cool  the  patriotism  nor  check  the  love  of 
adventure  of  Colonel  Allen.  He  immediately  repaired  to  Ticon- 
deroga,  and  offered  his  services  to  General  Schuyler  as  a  volunteer. 
That  officer  had  good  cause  for  disliking  Allen,  because  of  his 
former  hostility  to  the  authorities  of  New  York ;  for  in  the  events 
of  that  period,  Schuyler  had  been  an  active  participant.  Being 
aware  of  the  ambitious  spirit  of  the  brave  applicant,  his  love  of 
adventure,  his  hatred  of  restraint,  and  his  lack  of  discretion,  the 
general  hesitated,  for  he  doubted  whether  he  could  keep  the  rest> 
less  Vermonter  within  due  bounds.  He  finally  concluded  to  retain 
Allen  for  pioneer  duties  on  the  frontier,  and  in  that  capacity  he 
was  active  and  judicious  until,  as  the  result  of  one  of  his  daring 
adventures,  he  became  a  prisoner  in  irons. 

On  the  twenty-third  of  July,  General  Schuyler  despatched  Major 
John  Brown  into  Canada,  as  a  confidential  agent.  He  had  volun 
teered  his  services  and  they  were  gladly  accepted.  He  was  an 
American,  resided  on  the  Sorel  or  Richelieu  river,  was  well  ac 
quainted  with  the  Canadians  and  their  country,  and  was  very 
popular  among  them.  He  was  commissioned  to  ascertain  the  real 
temper  of  the  people,  to  collect  information  respecting  the  number 
and  condition  of  the  British  forces  there,  and  to  judge  in  what 
light  the  Canadians  would  view  an  invasion  of  their  province,  by 

*  American  Archives.  t  MS.  Letter,  August  4,  1775. 


CGO  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

an  attempt  to  take  St.  John  from  the  British.  Other  secret  agents 
were  employed  by  Schuyler,  and  before  the  middle  of  August  he 
was  well  informed  upon  the  subject  of  inquiry. 

Schuyler's  army,  meanwhile,  had  increased  very  slowly.  The 
country  had  been  scorched  by  a  drought,  which  rendered  food  for 
draught-cattle  so  scarce,  that  the  transportation  of  timber  for  boats, 
and  of  provisions  for  the  garrison,  had  been  much  delayed.  "  Pro 
visions  of  the  bread  kind,"  Schuyler  wrote  to  Washington,  on  the 
thirty-first  of  July,  "  are  scarce  with  me,  and,  therefore,  I  have  not 
dared  to  order  up  a  thousand  men  that  are  at  Albany,  lest  we 
should  starve  here."  And  the  tardiness  of  the  New  York  provin 
cial  Congress  in  providing  means,  was  very  marked.  "  Not  a  man 
from  this  colony  has  yet  joined  me,"  General  Schuyler  wrote  to  the 
commander-in-chief  on  the  sixth  of  August,  "  except  those  raised 
and  paid  by  the  committee  of  Albany ;  nor  have  I  yet  received 
the  necessary  supplies,  which  I  begged  the  New  York  provincial 
Congress  to  send  me,  as  long  ago  as  the  third  of  last  month,  and 
which  the  continental  Congress  had  desired  them  to  do."  Eight 
days  afterward,  Major  Brown,  on  his  return  from  Canada,  wrote  to 
Governor  Trumbull,  from  Crown  Point,  and  said :  "  It  seems  that 
some  evil  planet  has  reigned  in  this  quarter,  this  year,  for  notwith 
standing  the  season  is  far  advanced,  and  a  fine  opportunity  presents 
of  making  ourselves  masters  of  a  country  with  the  greatest  ease, 
which,  I  fear,  may  cost  us  much  blood  and  treasure,  if  delayed, 
the  New-Yorkers  have  acted  a  droll  part,  and  are  determined  to 
defeat  us,  if  in  their  power ;  they  have  failed  in  men  and  supplies."* 
Major  Brown  returned  to  Ticonderoga  on  the  fifteenth  of  August, 
and  reported  seven  hundred  regular  troops  in  Canada,  three  hun 
dred  of  whom  were  at  St.  John,  a  small  garrison  at  Quebec,  and 
the  remainder  at  Montreal,  Chamblee,  and  some  posts  further  up 
the  St.  Lawrence.  He  had  learned  that  Sir  John  Johnson  was  at 

*  The  omission  of  New  York  to  raise  men,  at  that  particular  time,  ought  not  to  be  a  cause  for 
unqualified  censure,  for  it  had  been  mutually  stipulated  that  Connecticut  was  to  furnish  troops,  and 
New  York  supplies.  A  little  later,  when  Schuyler  was  pressing  for  reinforcements,  tht3  New  York 
committee  of  safety,  acting  in  the  recess  of  the  Congress,  replied  to  him  despairingly  :  "  Our  troops 
can  be  of  no  service  to  you;  they  have  no  arms,  clothes,  blankets,  or  ammunition,  the  officers  no 
commissions,  our  treasury  no  money,  and  ourselves  in  debt." — See  Life  of  Gouverneur  Morris,  i.,  60. 


EMPLOYMENT  OF  INDIANS.  661 

Montreal,  with  almost  three  hundred  of  his  tenants  from  the  Mo 
hawk  country,  and  some  Indians,  and  was  endeavoring  to  persuade 
the  Caghnawgas,  near  that  city,  to  join  him.  Two  large  row- 
galleys,  mounting  twelve  guns  each,  were  on  the  stocks  and  nearly 
finished,  at  St.  John ;  and  there  were  two  batteries,  mounting  nine 
guns  each,  and  other  strong  outworks,  at  that  post.  He  also  re 
ported,  that  the  Canadians  were  unwilling  to  take  up  arms  for  the 
colonists,  but  that  they  longed  to  see  a  continental  army  penetrate 
their  country  and  relieve  them  from  British  rule.  The  Indians,  he 
was  assured,  would  go  with  the  Canadians ;  and  he  concluded  his 
report  by  the  expression  of  an  opinion,  that  the  conquest  of  Can 
ada,  if  undertaken  at  once,  might  be  easily  achieved. 

With  these  facts  before  him,  Schuyler  determined,  even  with  a 
small  force,  inadequately  supplied,  to  push  forward  as  soon  as  he 
should  receive  orders  to  do  so.  "I  am  prepared,"  he  wrote  to 
Washington,  "  to  move  against  the  enemy,  unless  your  excellency 
and  Congress  should  direct  otherwise."  While  waiting  for  a  reply, 
he  proceeded  to  Albany  to  hold  a  conference  with  chiefs  of  the  Six 
Nations  and  of  the  Caghnawgas,  leaving  the  command  of  the 
army  at  Ticonderoga  with  General  Montgomery.  This  conference 
had  been  appointed  by  General  Schuyler,  as  one  of  the  commis 
sioners  for  Indians  affairs  in  the  northern,  department,  and  its  results 
were  immediately  beneficial.*  While  there  he  received  a  letter 
from  Washington,  giving  him  information  of  a  council  he  had  just 
held  at  Cambridge,  with  the  chiefs  of  the  Caghnawga  and  St. 
Francis  tribes,  who  had  offered,  in  behalf  of  their  respective  people, 
to  join  the  Americans  in  the  invasion  of  Canada.  He  requested 

*  The  commissioners  for  the  northern  department  were  Major-General  Philip  Schuyler,  Major 
Joseph  Hawley,  Turbot  Francis,  Oliver  Wolcott,  and  Volckert  P.  Douw.  The  council  above  re 
ferred  to  commenced  its  sittings  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  August.  The  results  of  .that  council  were 
very  satisfactory  to  both  parties.  After  a  consultation  of  some  days,  during  which  time  many 
speeches  were  made,  the  Indians  declared  their  intentions  to  remain  neutral  and  peaceable  during 
the  impending  war.  The  reply  of  the  commissioners  was  conciliatory.  After  some  unfinished 
business  had  been  transacted,  the  council  closed  on  the  second  of  September,  and  the  Indians 
departed,  laded  with  many  presents.  But  the  greater  portion  of  the  Six  Nations  were  soon  drawn 
into  an  attitude  of  hostility  to  the  republicans,  through  the  influence  of  Sir  John  Johnson.  For  a 
time,  however,  the  people  of  Tryon  county  felt  secure  under  the  protection  of  the  treaty  of  neu 
trality  agreed  to  at  Albany,  and  the  committee  of  safety  were  enabled  to  do  much  in  preparing  fur 
defence  while  that  sense  of  security  wa^  felt. 


662  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

General  Schuyler  to  inform  him  concerning  the  intentions  of  Gov 
ernor  Carleton  with  respect  to  the  Indians,  for  he  was  averse  to 
employing  the  savages,  unless  compelled  to  do  so  by  the  necessity 
of  meeting  Indians  with  Indians,  as  he  had  advised  when  command 
ing  on  the  Virginia  frontier  many  years  before.  At  the  same  time 
he  communicated  a  plan  which  he  had  been  contemplating  for 
many  days,  by  which  the  British  forces  in  Canada  would  necessa 
rily  become  divided,  in  the  event  of  an  invasion  by  way  of  Montreal 
and  St.  John.  That  plan  contemplated  an  expedition  against 
Quebec,  by  way  of  the  Kennebec  and  Chaudiere  rivers,  and  that 
would  make  a  diversion  distracting  to  Carleton.  "  The  few  whom 
I  have  consulted  on  the  subject,"  Washington  wrote,  "  approve  it 
much,  but  the  final  determination  is  deferred  until  I  hear  from  you. 
You  will,  therefore,  by  the  return  of  this  messenger,  inform  me  of 
your  ultimate  resolution....  Not  a  moment's  time  is  to  be  lost  in 
the  preparations  for  this  enterprise,  if  the  advices  from  you  favor  it. 
With  the  utmost  expedition  the  season  will  be  considerably  ad 
vanced,  so  that  you  will  dismiss  the  express  as  soon  as  possible." 

General  Schuyler  was  delighted  with  this  plan.  After  heartily 
approving  of  it,  he  \vrote,  in  his  reply  :  "  Your  excellency  will  easily 
conceive  that  I  felt  happy  to  learn  your  intentions,  and  only  wished 
that  the  thought  had  struck  you  sooner."*  Concerning  Carleton's 
operations,  he  expressed  his  convictions,  that  he  would  do  all  in  his 
power  to  induce  the  savages  to  join  the  British,  and  added — "I 
should,  therefore,  not  hesitate  a  moment  to  employ  any  Indians 
that  might  be  willing  to  join  us." 

While  General  Schuyler  was  at  Albany,  Montgomery  received 
intelligence  from  a  scout,  that  the  armed  galleys  at  St.  John  were 
completed,  and  that  Carleton  was  preparing  to  send  an  expedition 
into  the  lake.  Major  Brown,  who  was  well  acquainted  with  affairs 
in  that  region,  urged  Montgomery  to  proceed  at  once  and  prevent 
the  expedition  from  coming  out  of  the  Sorel.  No  time  was  to  be 
lost ;  and  without  waiting  for  orders  from  General  Schuyler,  Mont 
gomery  prepared  his  little  flotilla  of  batteaux  and  a  schooner,  at 

*  Schuylcr's  MS.  Letter  Books. 


JR-r.  43.]  CHARACTER  OF  MONTGOMERY.  663 

Crown  Point,  to  proceed  down  the  lake,  and  make  a  defensive 
stand  at  Me  aux  Noix.  "I  am  so  much  of  Brown's  opinion,"  he 
wrote  to  his  general,  "  that  I  think  it  absolutely  necessary  to  move 
down  the  lake  with  the  utmost  despatch.  Should  the  enemy  get 
their  vessels  into  the  lake,  'tis  over  with  us  for  this  summer;  for 
which  reason  I  have  ordered  two  twelve-pounders  to  be  gotten 
ready  to-morrow,  if  possible,  and*  iron-wrork  to  make  logs  fast 
together  for  a  boom ;  and  hope  to  be  able,  if  we  can  get  down  in 
time,  to  prevent  their  entrance  into  the  lake  by  taking  post  at  the 
Isle  aux  Noix.  This  intelligence  has  involved  me  in  a  great  dilem 
ma.  The  moving  without  your  orders  I  do  n't  like ;  but  on  th£ 
other  hand  the  prevention  of  the  enemy  is  of  the  utmost  conse 
quence.  If  I  must  err,  I  wish  to  be  on  the  right  side.  The  express 
will  go  night  and  day,  and  I  hope  you  will  join  us  with  all  expe 
dition.  Let  me  entreat  you  (if  you  can  possibly),  to  follow  us  in 
a  whaleboat,  leaving  somebody  to  bring  forward  the  troops  and 
artillery.  It  will  give  the  men  great  confidence  in  your  spirit  and 
activity.  How  necessary  this  confidence  is  to  a  general  I  need  not 
tell  you." — "  I  most  heartily  wish  this  may  meet  with  your  appro 
bation,"  he  added,  "  and  be  assured  I  have  your  honor  and  reputa 
tion  highly  at  heart,  as  of  the  greatest  consequence  to  the  public 
service ;  that  all  my  ambition  is  to  do  my  duty  in  a  subordinate 
capacity,  without  the  least  ungenerous  intention  of  lessening  that 
merit  so  justly  your  due,  and  which  I  omit  no  opportunity  of  set 
ting  in  its  fullest  light.* 

This  letter,  so  decisive,  frank,  and  generous,  is  a  fair  index  of  the 
character  of  the  noble  Montgomery,  whom  Schuyler  loved  as  a 
brother.  His  conduct  on  this  occasion,  vindicated  as  it  wras  by  sub 
sequent  events,  was  highly  approved  by  his  commander ;  and  there 
was  not  a  moment  during  the  whole  campaign  that  followed,  when 
Schuyler's  unquestioning  confidence  in  the  judgment,  discretion, 
and  military  skill  of  his  lieutenant,  was  withdrawn.  Montgomery 
had  entered  the  field  as  a  patriot,  and  not  merely  as  a  soldier ;  for 
no  expectations  of  emolument  or  military  renown  could  have 

*  Autograph  Letter. 


C64  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

drawn  him  from  the  delights  of  rural  pursuits  on  the  banks  of  the 
Hudson,  and  the  society  of  a  young  wife,  and  loving  friends.  On 
accepting  his  appointment,  he  had  said  to  a  friend  —  "It  is  an 
event  which  must  put  an  end,  for  awhile,  perhaps  for  ever,  to  the 
quiet  scheme  of  life  I  had  prescribed  for  myself;  for,  though  en 
tirely  unexpected  and  undesired  by  me,  the  will  of  an  oppressed 
people,  compelled  to  choose  between  liberty  and  slavery,  must  be 
obeyed."  He  had  resolved  to  do  his  duty  well ;  and  when  he  gave 
his  wife  the  parting  kiss,  he  said — "You  shall  never  blush  for  your 
Montgomery." 

*  On  receiving  Montgomery's  letter,  Schuyler  immediately  set  out 
for  Ticonderoga,  and  arrived  there  on  the  evening  of  the  thirtieth, 
very  sick  with  a  bilious  fever  that  had  seized  him  on  the  way. 
He  was  too  ill  to  proceed  in  a  whaleboat :  indeed,  he  was  too  ill  to 
move  at  all  with  comfort  or  safety.  Yet,  after  ordering  the  artillery 
to  be  forwarded,  and  other  troops  at  Ticonderoga  to  follow,  he 
journeyed  on  the  next  day,  lying  upon  a  bed  in  a  covered  flat-boat, 
and  on  the  fourth  of  September,  he  overtook  Montgomery  and  his 
flotilla  at  the  Isle  la  Motte.  Montgomery  had  been  detained  at 
Crown  Point  by  a  "  barbarous  north  wind,"  until  the  morning  of 
the  thirtieth,  when  he  had  proceeded  down  the  lake  with  a  thou 
sand  men  —  as  many  as  his  small  supply  of  boats  could  carry. 

At  Isle  la  Motte  General  Schuyler  assumed  the  command  of  the 
little  invading  army,  though  confined  to  his  bed ;  and  on  the  even 
ing  of  the  fourth  the  little  flotilla  arrived  at  Isle  aux  Noix,  a  low, 
fertile  island  of  about  eighty-five  acres,  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Sorel  from  Lake  Champlain.  It  was  an  important  point,  and  had 
been  quite  strongly  fortified  during  the  French  and  Indian  war. 
The  small  garrison  fled  at  the  approach  of  the  Americans ;  and  on 
their  arrival  the  latter  fired  three  cannon,  which  was  a  precon 
certed  signal  to  apprize  the  Canadians  (among  whom  Major  Brown, 
Captain  Remember  Baker,  and  others,  had  established  friendly  rela 
tions)  of  that  auspicious  event.  There  General  Schuyler  estab 
lished  his  Jiead quarters,  and  on  the  fifth  of  September,  after  making 
preparations  for  an  immediate  attack  upon  St.  John,  he  issued 


^T.  43.]  ADDRESS  TO  THE  CANADIANS.  665 

the  following  address  to  the  inhabitants  of  Canada,  in  the  French 
language : — 

"  FRIENDS  AND  COUNTRYMEN  :  The  various  causes  that  have  driven 
the  ancient  British  colonies  in  America  to  arms,  have  been  so  fully 
set  forth  in  the  several  petitions,  papers,  letters,  and  declarations, 
published  by  the  grand  Congress,  that  our  Canadian  brethren,  at  the 
extirpation  of  whose  liberty,  as  well  as  ours,  the  various  schemes  of 
a  cruel  ministry  are  directly  tending,  can  not  fail  of  being  informed. 
And  we  can  not  doubt  that  you  are  pleased  that  the  grand  Con 
gress  have  ordered  an  army  into  Canada  to  expel  from  thence,  if 
possible,  those  British  troops  who,  now  acting  under  the  order  of  a 
despotic  ministry,  would  wish  to  enslave  their  countrymen.     This 
measure,  necessary  as  it  is,  the  Congress  would  not  have  entered 
on,  but  in  the  fullest  confidence  that  it  would  be  perfectly  agree 
able  to  you ;  for,  judging  of  your  feelings  by  their  own,  they  could 
not  conceive  that  anything  but  the  force  of  necessity  could  induce 
you  tamely  to  bear  the  insult  and  ignominy  that  are  daily  imposed 
on  you,  or  that  you  could  calmly  sit  by  and  see  those  chains  for 
ging  which  are  intended  to  bind  you,  your  posterity  and  ours,  in  one 
common  and  eternal  slavery.     To  secure  you  and  ourselves  from 
such  a  dreadful  bondage;  to  prevent  the  effects  that  might  follow 
from  the  ministerial  troops  remaining  in  Canada ;  to  restore  to  you 
those  rights  which  every  subject  of  the  British  empire,  from  the 
highest  to  the  very  lowest  order,  whatever  his  religious  sentiments 
may  be,  is  entitled  to,  are  the  only  views  of  the  Congress.     You 
will  readily  believe  me,  when  I  say,  that  the  Congress  have  given 
me  the  most  positive  orders  to  cherish  every  Canadian  and  every 
friend  to  the  cause  of  liberty,  and  sacredly  to  guard  their  property ; 
and  such  is  the  confidence  I  have  in  the  good  disposition  of  my 
army,  that  I  do  not  believe  I  shall  have  occasion  to  punish  a  single 
offence  committed  against  you. 

"  A  treaty  of  friendship  has  just  been  concluded  with  the  Six  Na 
tions  at  Albany,  and  I  am  furnished  with  an  ample  present  for  their 
Caghnawga  brethren  and  the  other  Canadians  tribes.  If  any  of 
them  have  lost  their  lives,  it  was  done  contrary  to  orders,  and  by 


606  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

scoundrels  ill-affected  to  our  glorious  cause.  I  shall  take  great 
pleasure  in  burying  the  dead,  and  wiping  away  the  tears  of  their 
surviving  relations,  which  you  will  communicate  to  them."* 

Supplied  with  copies  of  this  address,  Colonel  Allen  and  Major 
Brown,  with  interpreters,  were  despatched  for  Canada  the  next 
morning,  to  reconnoitre  the  country  between  the  Sorel  and  the 
St.  Lawrence,  to  distribute  the  friendly  paper,  and  to  ascertain 
the  feelings  of  the  people.  This  was  a  delicate  and  somewhat 
perilous  mission,  for  the  British  troops,  alarmed  by  the  presence  of 
the  invaders,  were  vigilant,  and  the  Canadians  might  have  been  as 
treacherous  as  they  were  timid  and  fickle.  On  the  same  day  prep 
arations  were  made  for  an  immediate  attack  upon  St.  John. 

*  This  referred  to  an  unhappy  circumstance  which  had  occurred  a  short  time  previously,  as 
related  by  General  Schuyler  in  a  letter  to  members  of  the  committee  of  safety,  at  Albany,  written 
from  Ticonderoga  on  his  dictation,  on  the  day  that  he  proceeded  down  the  lake.  He  says  :  "  Cap 
tain  Baker,  of  the  unenlisted  Green-Mountain  Boys,  having  been  heretofore  employed  by  me  on  a 
scout  to  Canada,  with  the  view  to  gain  intelligence,  and  with  express  orders  not  to  molest  either 
Canadians  or  Indians,  lately  went  into  that  country  without  my  leave,  with  a  party  of  five  men,  and 
discovering  a  boat  manned  hv  an  equal  number  of  Indians  (which,  from  authentic  intelligence  sent 
me  from  Canada,  I  learn  were  of  the  Caghnawga  tribe),  attempted  to  fire  on  them,  but  his  gun 
missing,  and  he  putting  his  head  from  behind  the  tree  where  he  stood  in  order  to  hammer  his  flint, 
received  a  shot  in  his  forehead  and  instantly  expired,  upon  which  his  party  returned  the  fire,  and 
unfortunately  killed  two  of  the  Indians."  That  event  offended  the  Indians,  and  some  of  the  Cagh- 
nawgas  joined  the  British.  It  was  important  to  conciliate  the  tribe,  and  for  that  reason  the  last 
clause  in  Schuyler's  address  was  inserted. 


/El-.  43.]  MOVEMENTS  AGAINST  ST.  JOHN.  667 


CHAPTER   LVII. 

MOVEMENTS    AGAINST    ST.    JOHN AMERICANS    ATTACKED SECRET     INFORMATION 

—  COUNCIL  OF  WAR RETURN    TO  ISLE  AUX    NOIX SICKNESS  OF    SCHUYLER 

HE  RETURNS  TO  TICONDEROGA ARRIVAL  OF  REINFORCEMENTS MONTGOMERY 

PROCEEDS    AGAINST    ST.    JOHN A    SKIRMISH PREPARATIONS     FOR    A     SIEGE 

INSUBORDINATION ETHAN  ALLEN  IN  CANADA HIS  ATTEMPT  TO  CAPTURE  MON 
TREAL HIS  DEFEAT  AND   CAPTIVITY THE    MEASURE    CENSURED CHARACTER 

OF    THE    ARMY CAPTURE    OF    CHAMBLEE BRITISH    REPULSED    AT     LONGUEUIL 

AND  SOREL SURRENDER  OF  ST.  JOHN. 

ALTHOUGH  the  invading  army  fit  for  service  at  the  Isle  aux  Noix 
did  not  exceed  a  thousand  men.  General  Sehuyler  resolved  to 
proceed  against  St.  John  immediately,  hoping  the  measure  would 
have  a  good  effect  upon  the  Canadians,  and  induce  many  to  join 
him.  Accordingly  the  invaders  moved  slowly  down  the  lake  in 
boats,  early  on  the  morning  of  the  sixth  of  September.  When 
within  two  miles  of  St.  John,  a  cannonade  was  opened  upon  them 
from  the  fort,  but  without  effect.  They  pushed  forward  half  a  mile 
farther  and  landed  in  a  deep,  close  swamp,  where  an  advanced 
party  of  Connecticut  troops  had  a  skirmish  with  some  tories  and 
Indians,  which  resulted  in  a  trifling  loss  on  both  sides.  This  made 
the  Americans  more  cautious;  and  on  the  approach  of  night  the 
troops  were  concentrated  at  one  point,  where  they  cast  up  an 
intrenchment  to  defend  themselves  in  the  event  of  another  attack. 
That  evening  a  gentleman  of  the  neighborhood  came  secretly  into 
the  camp  and  informed  General  Sehuyler  of  the  exact  state  of 
affairs  in  that  vicinity. 

There  were  no  regular  troops  in  Canada,  he  said,  except  the 
twenty-sixth  regiment,  under  the  command  of  General  Richard 
Prescott,  most  of  whom  were  at  St.  John  and  Chamblee.  There 
were  one  hundred  Indians  at  St.  John ;  and  quite  a  large  body  of 


668  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

! 

savages  were  with  Sir  John  Johnson  near  Montreal.  The  works  at 
St.  John,  he  said,  were  completed  and  amply  furnished  with  cannon 
and  stores ;  and  one  of  the  armed  vessels  nearly  ready  to  sail,  was 
pierced  for  sixteen  guns.  The  informant  expressed  his  belief  that 
not  one  Canadian  would  join  the  Americans,  but  that  they  would 
remain  strictly  neutral.  He  assured  the  general,  however,  that 
they  would  be  pleased  to  have  a  continental  army  penetrate  the 
province,  provided  the  persons  and  property  of  the  people  should 
remain  uninjured,  and  gold  and  silver  be  paid  for  all  that  the  troops 
might  purchase. 

Impressed  with  the  importance  of  this  intelligence,  General 
Schuyler  called  a  council  of  war  on  the  morning  of  the  seventh,* 
when  it  was  unanimously  resolved,  that  the  weak  state  of  their 
army  and  the  deficiency  in  artillery,  rendered  it  inexpedient  to 
attempt  the  siege  of  St.  John,  at  that  time,  and  that  they  should 
"  return  without  delay  to  the  Isle  aux  Noix,  throw  a  boom  across 
the  channel,  and  erect  the  proper  works  for  its  defence ;  there  wait 
for  certain  intelligence  touching  the  intentions  of  the  Canadians, 
and  when  reinforced,  send  a  strong  detachment  into  the  country, 
should  the  Canadians  favor  such  a  design."f  They  then  proceeded, 
on  their  return,  in  the  same  order  as  they  had  advanced ;  the  New 
York  troops  in  front,  the  Connecticut  troops  next,  and  the  row- 
galleys  in  the  rear.  On  arriving  at  the  Isle  aux  Noix,  at  noon, 
General  Schuyler  sent  an  account  of  his  movements  to  the  presi 
dent  of  the  continental  Congress,  in  which  he  remarked — "I  can 
not  estimate  the  obligations  I  lay  under  to  General  Montgomery, 
for  many  important  services  he  has  done  and  daily  does,  in  which  he 
has  had  little  assistance  from  me,  as  I  have  not  enjoyed  a  moment's 
health  since  I  left  Fort  George.  I  am  now  so  low  as  not  to  be  able 
to  hold  the  pen."J 

Every  effort  was  now  made  to  hasten  forward  reinforcements, 
and  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  the  little  army  was  swelled  to 

*  The  council  was  composed  of  Generals  Schuyler  and  Montgomery,  Colonel  Watorbury  and 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Whiting  of  the  fifth  Connecticut  regiment,  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  liitzema, 
of  the  first  New  York  regiment. 

t  Schuyler's  Order  Book.  J  MS.  Letter  Books. 


Mr.  43.]  ILLNESS  OF  GENERAL  SCHUYLER.  069 

more  than  seventeen  hundred  men.  But  there  was  an  enemy  at 
work,  insidious  and  more  dangerous  than  the  Indians,  Canadians,  or 
regulars.  The  Isle  aux  Noix  is  situated  in  the  midst  of  a  low, 
marshy  country,  and  the  miasma  of  early  September  so  poisoned 
the  troops,  that  before  the  army  had  been  there  a  week,  more  than 
six  hundred  of  them  were  on  the  sick-list.  The  unwholesomeness 
of  the  air  aggravated  General  Schuyler's  maladies,  and  he  was 
brought  almost  to  the  gate  of  death.  At  one  time  false  hopes 
would  cheer  him,  and  then  the  fever  and  the  rheumatism  would 
renew  their  attacks  and  banish  all  expectations  of  a  speedy  recov 
ery.  Finally  his  complicated  disorders  assumed  a  type  so  alarming, 
during  the  night  of  the  fifteenth,  that  on  the  following  morning  he 
gave  up  the  command  of  the  army  to  General  Montgomery,  and 
left  for  Ticonderoga,  on  a  bed  in  a  covered  boat,  as  he  came. 

Meanwhile,  the  plan  for  attacking  St.  John  had  been  arranged  by 
Schuyler  and  Montgomery,  to  be  attempted  as  soon  as  reinforce 
ments  and  artillery  should  arrive.  Some  important  measures  con 
cerning  Canada  had  also  been  concerted.  Some  military  move 
ments,  by  small  parties,  had  occurred,  but  without  much  effect. 
Major  Brown  hacl  been  sent,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  continen 
tals  and  thirty  Canadian  recruits,  to  reconnoitre  the  vicinity  of 
Chamblee,  and  make  friends  of  the  inhabitants ;  and  Colonel  Allen 
had  also  been  sent  toward  the  St.  Lawrence  again,  to  "  preach  poli 
tics,"  and  beat  up  for  recruits. 

An  hour  after  his  departure,  General  Schuyler  met  Colonel  War 
ner,  with  one  hundred  and  seventy  Green-Mountain  Boys,  in  boats, 
on  their  way  toward  the  camp.  Part  of  the  corps  had  mutinied 
and  deserted,  and  the  remainder  were  at  Crown  Point.  On  the  fol 
lowing  day,  greatly  exhausted,  the  general  reached  Ticonderoga, 
whence  Captain  Lamb  and  his  artillery  company  had  just  sailed 
for  Isle  aux  Noix.  He  issued  orders  for  an  immediate  embarkation 
of  most  of  the  troops  at  Ticonderoga,  for  the  same  destination ; 
and  on  the  twentieth  he  was  well  enough  to  write  to  General 
Washington,  and  say :  "  I  find  myself  much  better,  as  the  fever  has 
left  me,  and  I  hope  soon  to  return  where  I  ought  and  wish  to  be, 


670  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

unless  a  barbarous  relapse  should  dash  this  cup  of  hope  from  my 
lips." 

On  the  day  when  Schuyler  left  the  camp  for  Ticonderoga,  Mont 
gomery  again  advanced  upon  St.  John,  with  one  thousand  men. 
That  post  was  now  garrisoned  by  almost  six  hundred  regulars  and 
two  hundred  Canadian  militia,  under  the  command  of  Major  Pres 
ton.  Montgomery,  with  his  wrhole  force,  landed  on  the  west  side 
of  the  Sorel,  a  little  above  the  fort,  on  the  evening  of  the  seven 
teenth,  and  on  the  following  morning,  he  led  a  corps  of  five  hun 
dred  men,  in  person,  down  the  river  to  the  north  side  of  the  fort, 
where  the  village  of  St.  John  now  stands.  There  he  met  a  detach 
ment  from  the  garrison,  returning  from  the  pursuit  of  a  party  of 
Americans  under  Major  Brown,  whom  they  had  just  repulsed. 
They  had  two  field-pieces  with  them.  These  and  the  whole  detach 
ment  might  have  been  captured  but  for  that  insubordination,  espe 
cially  of  the  Green-Mountain  Boys,  which  gave  Montgomery  so 
much  trouble  during  his  brief  leadership  in  the  campaign.  Cau 
tion,  secrecy,  and  concert  of  action,  were  out  of  the  question,  and 
the  enemy,  after  a  slight  skirmish,  retreated  with  precipitation,  but 
in  safety,  to  the  fort.  Montgomery  then  pushed  forward  to  the 
junction  of  the  roads  leading  respectively  to  Chamblee  and  Lon- 
gueuil,  where  he  left  the  five  hundred  men  to  form  an  entrenched 
camp  and  cut  off  supplies  for  the  fort  from  the  interior.*  He  then 
returned  to  his  camp  to  send  forward  the  light  artillery,  for  Captain 
Lamb,  with  heavier  guns,  had  not  yet  arrived. 

Montgomery  now  proceeded  to  invest  the  fort.  His  preparations 
for  a  siege  were  meagre,  yet  he  worked  on  cheerfully.  He  caused 
a  battery  to  be  erected  on  a  point  of  land  that  commanded  the  fort 
and  the  shipping,  and  another  was  cast  up  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river,  some  distance  below  the  fort.  But  battery  cannon  were 
wranting,  and  the  inexperienced  engineer  was  rendered  still  more 
inefficient  by  unpractised  artillerymen.  For  a  week  the  siege  went 
on  slowly,  and,  meanwhile,  disease  appeared  among  the  troops,  for 
the  ground  was  swampy,  and  the  trees,  small  but  thick,  shut  out 

*  Montgomery's  despatch  to  General  Schuyler ;  Autograph  Letter. 


.ET.  43.]  MUTINOUS  SPIRIT  IN  CAMP.  G71 

the  sun.  At  this  juncture  Captain  Lamb  and  his  company  arrived 
with  heavier  artillery,  and,  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  September,  he 
bedded  a  thirteen-inch  mortar  near  the  battery  on  the  east  side  of 
the  river,  and  hurled  many  shots  and  shells  against  the  enemy.  But 
the  distance  from  the  fort  was  too  great  for  his  bombardment  to 
have  much  effect,  and  Montgomery  resolved  to  abandon  the  bat 
teries  and  take  a  new  position  nearer  the  fort,  where  the  ground 
was  firm  and  the  water  wholesome.  Insubordination  was  imme 
diately  rampant,  and  the  general  was  informed,  that  most  of  the 
troops  would  refuse  their  acquiescence,  and  would  leave  if  he 
should  attempt  coercion.  Unable  either  to  punish  them  for  mutiny 
or  to  convince  them  of  their  error,  he  yielded  so  far  as  to  call  a 
council  of  war.  In  that  council  the  same  spirit  prevailed,  and  he 
was  overruled.  This  triumph  of  insubordination  made  the  recu 
sants  more  bold,  and  disorder  reigned  in  the  American  camp.  At 
length,  after  several  precious  days  had  been  wasted,  a  better  spirit 
was  manifested.  Montgomery,  sometimes  impetuous  and  impatient, 
was  judicious  and  firm.  He  was  eloquent  in  speech,  and  possessed 
most  winning  ways.  These,  working  with  patience,  accomplished 
what  official  power  had  failed  to  achieve,  and  the  plans  of  the  gen 
eral  were  adopted.  On  the  seventh  of  October  the  camp  was 
moved  to  the  higher  ground  northwest  of  the  fort,  where  intrench- 
ments  were  thrown  up,  and  the  investment  of  the  post  was  made 
complete.  But,  for  want  of  heavy  cannon,  no  perceptible  effect 
had  yet  been  made  upon  the  works  of  the  enemy. 

While  these  preparations  had  been  going  on,  small  detachments 
of  Americans,  who  were  joined  by  friendly  Canadians,  were  active 
in  the  vicinity,  cutting  off  supplies  for  the  garrison,  and  keeping 
back  reinforcements.  Sometimes  rashness  and  imprudence  marked 
these  movements,  and  they  gave  both  Montgomery  and  Schuyler 
much  uneasiness.  Colonel  Allen  was  particularly  active  in  these 
enterprises ;  and  Major  Brown  was  also  ambitious  to  make  some 
movement  that  should  give  himself  the  character  of  a  bold  and 
victorious  leader. 

Allen  had  been  very  successful  in  his  political  mission  in  Canada. 


672  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

"  I  passed  through  all  the  parishes  on  the  river  Sorel,"  he  says,  "  to 
a  parish  at  the  mouth  of  the  same,  preaching  politics ;  and  went 
thence  across  the  Sorel  to  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  and  up  the  river 
through  the  parishes,  to  Longueuil,  and  so  far  met  with  good  suc 
cess  as  an  itinerant."*  Within  a  week  after  he  left  the  American 
camp  at  the  Isle  aux  Noix  he  was  at  St.  Ours,  twelve  miles  south 
of  the  Sorel,  with  two  hundred  and  fifty  Canadians  under  arms. 
His  boldness,  his  personal  bearing,  his  zeal,  and  his  large  promises 
captivated  the  people,  and  he  wrote  to  Montgomery  that  within 
three  days  he  should  join  him  in  laying  siege  to  St.  John,  with  at 
least  five  hundred  armed  Canadians.  His  letter  was  characteristic 
of  the  writer — sanguine,  boastful,  and  elated  by  success.  "I  could 
raise  one  or  two  thousand  in  a  week's  time,"  he  said ;  "  but  I  will 
first  visit  the  army  with  a  less  number,  and,  if  necessary,  go  again 
recruiting.  Those  that  used  to  be  enemies  to  our  cause  come  cap 
in  hand  to  me ;  and  I  swear  by  the  Lord,  I  can  raise  three  times 
the  number  of  our  army  in  Canada,  provided  you  continue  the 


siege. 


While  on  his  way  to  Montgomery's  camp,  by  way  of  Laprairie, 
from  Longueuil,  with  a  guard  of  eighty  men,  on  the  morning  of 
the  twenty-fourth  of  September,  Allen  fell  in  with  Major  Brown,  at 
the  head  of  a  party  of  Americans  and  Canadians.  A  private  con 
ference  was  held,  when  Brown  informed  Allen,  that  the  garrison 
at  Montreal  did  not  exceed  thirty  men,  and  might  easily  be 
taken;  and  he  proposed  that  they  should,  with  their  respective 
forces,  cross  the  St.  Lawrence  at  separate  points,  make  a  simul 
taneous  attack  upon  the  town,  and  secure  a  joint  and  very  im 
portant  victory.  This  proposition  pleased  the  ambition  of  Allen, 
and  his  partisan  spirit  was  thoroughly  aroused  by  the  enticing 
prospect  of  a  repetition  of  the  conquests  he  had  achieved  on 
Lake  Champlain.  Visions  of  victory  and  the  plaudits  of  posterity 
suddenly  assumed  the  shapes  of  reality  in  his  mind,  and  he  was 
impatient  for  action.  The  plan  was  soon  arranged.  Allen  was  to 
return  to  Longueuil,  on  the  southern  shore  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  a 

*  Ethan  Allen's  Narrative,  page  21,  Burlington  edition,  1846. 


JEr.  43.]          ATTEMPT  TO  TAKE  MONTREAL.  673 

little  below  Montreal,  and  cross  there,  while  Brown,  with  two  hun 
dred  men,  was  to  cross  just  above  the  city ;  and,  at  a  concerted 
signal,  they  were  to  make  a  simultaneous  attack  upon  the  town. 
All  this  was  to  be  done  without  the  knowledge  or  consent  of  Mont 
gomery,  who  was  anxiously  waiting  before  St.  John  for  the  rein 
forcements  which  these  leaders  were  about  to  employ  in  this  haz 
ardous  enterprise. 

Allen  hastened  back  to  Longueuil  and  secured  a  few  canoes ;  and 
on  that  very  night,  according  to  arrangement,  he  crossed  the  St. 
Lawrence  with  thirty  Americans  and  eighty  Canadians.  It  was  a 
tedious  operation,  for  the  night  was  dark  and  windy,  the  current 
strong  and  eddying,  and  the  canoes  frail  and  few.  Three  times 
they  crossed  and  recrossed,  before  all  were  landed  on  the  opposite 
shore,  and  then  the  dawn  began  to  glow  in  the  east.  Allen  placed 
guards  in  such  a  way  that  intelligence  of  their  presence  should  not 
reach  Montreal,  and  then  anxiously  awaited  for  the  three  huzzas 
which  Brown's  party  were  to  give,  as  a  signal  for  attack.  The  sun 
arose,  yet  no  signal  was  heard.  It  advanced  toward  meridian  yet 
all  was  silent.  The  brave  Vermonter  would  then  have  retreated, 
but  it  was  too  late.  An  escaped  captive  had  alarmed  the  garrison, 
and  all  but  the  first  canoe-loads  must  become  prisoners,  if  an  at- 
tempt  should  be  made  to  recross  the  river.  "  This  I  could  not 
reconcile  to  my  feelings  as  a  man,  much  less  as  an  officer,"  said 
Allen,  "  and  I  therefore  concluded  to  maintain  the  ground,  if  pos 
sible,  and  all  to  fare  alike."  This  generosity  cost  him  a  long  and 
wearisome  captivity. 

The  morning  wore  away,  and  it  was  afternoon  before  the  enemy 
appeared.  Allen  had  taken  a  position  for  defence,  and  resolved  to 
sell  life  and  liberty  dearly.  Between  two  and  three  o'clock  forty 
regular  troops,  more  than  two  hundred  Canadians,  and  a  few  In 
dians  who  were  in  Montreal,  came  down  upon  the  invaders,  led  by 
Major  Campbell.  A  sharp  conflict  ensued,  which  lasted  an  hour  and 
three  quarters.  The  brave  Allen  commanded  skilfully  and  fought 
gallantly,  until  only  thirty  or  forty  of  his  men  remained,  and  some 
of  these  were  wounded.  Some  had  been  killed,  and  the  Canadians, 

43 


674  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

almost  to  a  man,  had  deserted  him  early  in  the  engagement.  He 
retreated  nearly  a  mile,  for  he  "  expected,  in  a  very  short  time,  to 
try  the  world  of  spirits,"  as  he  had  no  hopes  of  quarter.  He  at 
length  surrendered,  with  promises  of  honorable  terms  for  himself 
and  his  surviving  companions,  thirty-eight  in  number,  of  whom 
seven  were  wounded. 

They  were  conducted  into  the  town  and  delivered  to  General  Pres- 
cott,  the  commander,  who  was  a  petty  tyrant,  and  seldom  exercised 
the  common  courtesies  of  life  toward  the  unfortunate  in  his  power. 
His  prisoner  was  rough  in  manner  and  personal  appearance.  His 
jacket  was  made  of  deerskin,  his  vest  and  breeches  of  coarse  serge, 
his  stockings  of  red  worsted,  his  shoes  of  cowskin,  the  soles  well 
fortified  by  hob-nails,  and  on  his  head  was  a  red  woollen  cap.  To 
the  eye  of  Prescott,  Allen  and  his  followers  appeared  more  like  free 
booters  than  soldiers,  and  he  addressed  the  leader  with  that  petu 
lance  and  superficial  anger  which  characterize  small  minds.  He 
inquired  his  name,  and  whether  he  was  the  Colonel  Allen  who  took 
Ticonderoga.  When  answered  in  the  affirmative,  he  stormed, 
shook  his  cane  over  Allen's  head,  calling  him  many  hard  names, 
and  denounced  him  as  a  rebel,  in  bitter  terms.  "  I  told  him,"  says 
Allen,  "  he  would  do  well  not  to  cane  me,  for  I  was  not  accustomed 
to  it,  and  shook  my  fist  at  him,  telling  him  that  was  the  beetle  of 
mortality  for  him  if  he  offered  to  strike."  A  British  officer,  stand 
ing  near,  reminded  Prescott,  in  a  whisper,  that  it  would  be  dishonor 
able  to  strike  a  prisoner,  when  Allen  and  his  men  were  immediately 
placed  under  the  care  of  a  sergeant's  command.  They  were  con 
veyed  on  board  the  Gaspe  war-schooner,  lying  at  Montreal,  placed 
in  irons,  and  thrust  into  the  hold  of  the  vessel.  A  bar  eight  feet 
long  was  riveted  to  the  shackles  of  Allen,  and  his  fellow-prisoners 
were  fastened  together  in  pairs  with  handcuffs.  From  that  floating 
prison  the  captive  leader  sent  the  following  respectful  letter  to 
General  Prescott,  but  it  elicited  no  response  from  that  brutal  officer, 
who  had  threatened  him  with  a  halter  at  Tyburn : — 

"  HONORABLE  SIR  :  In  the  wheel  of  transitory  events  I  find  myself 
prisoner,  and  in  irons.  Probably  your  honor  has  certain  reasons  to 


JET.  43.]  ALLEN  A  PRISONER  IN  IRONS.  675 

me  inconceivable,  though  I  challenge  an  instance  of  this  sort  of 
economy  of  the  Americans  during  the  late  war  to  any  officers  of 
the  crown.  On  my  part,  I  have  to  assure  your  honor,  that  when 
I  had  the  command  and  took  Captain  Delaplace  and  Lieutenant 
Fulton,  with  the  garrison  of  Ticonderoga,  I  treated  them  with 
every  mark  of  friendship  and  generosity,  the  evidence  of  which  is 
notorious  even  in  Canada.  I  have  only  to  add  that  I  expect  an 
honorable  and  humane  treatment,  as  an  officer  of  my  rank  and 
merit  should  have,  and  subscribe  myself  your  honor's  most  obe 
dient  servant."* 

Such  was  the  unfortunate  termination  of  a  rash  enterprise ;  and 
its  effect  upon  the  Canadians  at  that  critical  juncture,  when  their 
good  opinion  was  eagerly  sought  by  the  continentals,  was  unpleas 
ant,  and  damaging  to  the  American  cause.  The  reason  of  Brown's 
failure  to  co-operate  with  Allen  was  never  satisfactorily  explained. 
Had  they  acted  in  concert,  according  to  arrangement,  they  might 
have  been  successful.  Half  carried  out,  the  plan  proved  disastrous, 
and  both  Allen  and  Brown  were  blamed;  the  one  for  proposing, 
and  the  other  for  attempting  the  unauthorized  measure.  Mont 
gomery  was  greatly  annoyed  by  this  event ;  and  General  Schuyler, 
writing  to  the  continental  Congress,  said :  "  I  am  apprehensive  of 
disagreeable  consequences  arising  from  Mr.  Allen's  improvidence. 
I  always  dreaded  his  impatience  of  subordination,  and  it  was  not 
until  after  a  solemn  promise  made  me,  in  the  presence  of  several 
officers,  that  he  would  demean  himself  properly,  that  I  would  permit 

*  Ethan  Allen  was  then  thirty-six  years  of  age,  having  been  born  in  Roxbury,  Litchfield  county, 
Connecticut,  in  the  year  1739.  He  went  to  Vermont  at  an  early  age,  and  in  1770,  he  took  an  active 
part  in  the  disturbances  between  the  inhabitants  of  the  province  of  New  York  and  those  of  the  New 
Hampshire  Grants.  He  remained  n've  weeks  in  irons  on  board  the  Gaspe,  at  Montreal,  when  the 
vessel  went  down  to  Quebec.  There  he  was  transferred  to  another  vessel,  where  he  was  treated 
humanely,  and  sent  to  England  to  be  tried  for  treason.  In  his  grotesque  garb,  he  attracted  much 
attention  at  Falmouth,  where  he  was  landed.  He  was  confined  in  Pendennis  castle,  for  awhile,  and 
in  the  spring  of  1776,  he  was  sent  to  Halifax,  the  ministry  considering  it  inexpedient  to  treat  him 
otherwise  than  as  a  prisoner-of-war.  He  was  confined  in  the  jail  there  until  the  autumn,  when  he 
was  sent  to  New  York,  that  city  being  in  possession  of  the  British.  There  he  was  kept,  part  of  the 
time  on  parole  and  part  of  the  time  in  prison,  for  about  a  year  and  a  half.  In  May,  1778,  he  was 
exchanged  for  Colonel  Campbell,  and  returned  to  his  home  in  Vermont.  There  he  was  active  in 
civil  life,  much  of  the  time  until  his  death,  which  occurred  at  Colchester,  Vermont,  on  the  thirteenth 
of  February,  1789.  His  remains  repose  in  a  beautiful  little  cemetery,  near  Burlington,  Vermont. 
Ethan  Allen  was  a  plain,  blunt,  honest  man,  of  purest  virtue  and  sternest  integrity. 


676  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

him  to  attend  the  army.  Nor  would  I  have  consented  then,  had 
not  his  solicitations  been  backed  by  several  officers."*  Washington 
wrote  to  Schuyler,  three  weeks  afterward,  and  said :  "  Colonel 
Allen's  misfortune  will,  I  hope,  teach  a  lesson  of  prudence  and 
subordination  to  others,  who  may  be  too  ambitious  to  outshine 
their  general  officers,  and,  regardless  of  order  and  duty,  rush  into 
enterprises  which  have  unfavorable  effects  on  the  public,  and  are 
destructive  to  themselves." 

But  the  troops  did  not  all  heed  the  lesson  which  taught  subordi 
nation,  for  many  became  more  and  more  disorderly  and  mutinous, 
while  their  commander  was  nobly  planning  means  for  the  capture 
of  the  fort.  Nothing  but  the  personal  popularity  of  Montgomery 
could  have  prevented  utter  anarchy.  His  patience  was  tried  to 
the  utmost;  and  the  sense  of  responsibility  to  his  adopted  country, 
at  this  critical  moment,  alone  prevented  his  resigning  his  commis 
sion  with  disgust.  In  a  letter  to  Schuyler,  he  said :  "  Were  I  not 
afraid  the  example  would  be  too  generally  followed,  and  that  the 
public  service  might  suffer,  I  would  not  stay  an  hour  at  the  head 
of  troops  whose  operations  I  can  not  direct." 

The  spirit  of  General  Schuyler  who  yet  lay  sick  at  Ticonderoga, 
was  continually  chafed  by  reports  of  gross  irregularities  of  every 
description,  not  only  in  the  camp  before  St.  John,  but  almost  in  his 
immediate  presence.  u  Such  scenes  of  rascality,"  he  wrote  to  Mont 
gomery,  on  the  fourth  of  October,  "  are  daily  opening  to  me,  as  will 
surprise  you  to  learn."  To  General  Washington  he  wrote :  "  The 
vexation  of  spirit  under  which  I  labor,  that  a  barbarous  complica 
tion  of  disorders  should  prevent  me  from  reaping  those  laurels  for 
which  I  have  unweariedly  wrought  since  I  was  honored  with  this 
command ;  the  anxiety  I  have  suffered  since  my  arrival  here,  lest 
the  army  should  starve,  occasioned  by  a  scandalous  want  of  subor 
dination  and  inattention  to  my  orders,  in  some  of  the  officers  that 
I  left  to  command  at  the  different  posts ;  the  vast  variety  of  disa 
greeable  and  vexatious  incidents  that  almost  hourly  arise  in  some 
department  or  other,  not  only  retard  my  cure,  but  have  put  me 

*  Schuy  let's  Letter  Books,  October  5 


JRr.  43.]  CAPTURE  OF  FORT  CHAMBLEE.  677 

considerably  back  for  some  days  past.  But  the  glorious  end  we 
have  in  view,  and  which  I  have  confident  hope  will  be  attained, 
will  atone  for  all."*  Washington  replied  hopefully  and  sympatheti 
cally.  "  The  more  I  reflect  upon  the  importance  of  your  expedition," 
he  said,  "  the  greater  is  my  concern  lest  it  should  sink  under  insu 
perable  difficulties.  I  look  upon  the  interests  and  salvation  of  our 
bleeding  country,  in  a  great  degree  as  depending  upon  your  success." 

Foiled  as  he  was  in  many  of  his  intended  movements  in  detail, 
Montgomery  pressed  the  siege  of  St.  John  with  as  much  vigor  as 
circumstances  would  allow ;  and  good  fortune  appeared  to  supply 
what  the  inefficiency  of  many  of  his  troops  caused  him  to  lack. 
Friendly  Canadians  gave  him  much  useful  information;  and  at 
length  a  scout  from  among  them  brought  intelligence  which  led  to 
a  most  favorable  result.  He  assured  the  general  that  the  fort  at 
Chamblee,  twelve  miles  below  St.  John,  had  but  a  small  garrison 
and  might  be  easily  taken.  Carleton  had  no  idea  that  Chamblee 
could  be  reached  by  the  invaders,  unless  they  should  first  capture  St. 
John,  and  he  had  omitted  to  strengthen  the  fortress  there.  On  the 
eighteenth  of  October,  Montgomery  sent  Colonel  Bedell,  and  Majors 
Brown  and  Livingston,  with  detachments  which  amounted  in  all  to 
about  three  hundred  men,  to  make  a  night  attack  upon  the  fort. 
These  detachments  consisted  chiefly  of  Canadians.  Cannon  were 
conveyed  down  the  river  upon  batteaux,  under  cover  of  darkness, 
to  the  Chamblee  rapids,  where  they  were  mounted  and  then 
dragged  to  the  point  of  attack.  The  garrison,  surprised  and  over 
powered,  made  a  feeble  and  brief  resistance,  and  then  surrendered. 

This  was  a  most  important  and  timely  victory  for  the  republicans, 
for  a  large  quantity  of  military  stores  and  munitions  of  war,  greatly 
needed  by  the  besiegers  before  St.  John,  were  among  the  spoils. 
Six  tons  of  powder,  a  large  quantity  of  provisions,  small-arms, 
shells,  balls,  and  bullets,  and  rigging  for  vessels,  were  very  accepta 
ble  additions  to  the  commissariat  of  the  continentals.  They  had 
also  made  about  ninety  men  (officers  and  privates),  besides  a  great 
number  of  women  and  children,  their  prisoners ;  and  their  chief 

*  Schuyler's  Letter  Books. 


678  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

trophy  was  the  flag  of  the  seventh  regiment  of  British  regulars, 
found  in  the  fort.  This,  the  first  trophy  of  the  kind  captured  by 
the  republicans,  was  sent  to  General  Schuyler  at  Ticonderoga,  and 
by  him  to  the  continental  Congress,  where  it  was  received  with 
delight.  The  garrison,  with  the  women  and  children,  were  sent  to 
Connecticut,  and  the  ammunition  and  stores  to  the  camp  of  the 
besiegers.* 

When  intelligence  of  this  victory  reached  Montgomery,  he  pro 
ceeded  to  the  erection  of  a  battery  within  two  hundred  and  fifty 
yards  of  the  fort,  and  mounted  four  heavy  guns  and  six  mortars 
upon  it.  He  also  raised  a  blockhouse  before  the  fort  on  the  oppo 
site  side  of  the  river,  and  there  mounted  one  gun  and  two  mortars, 
and  commenced  an  assault  with  much  earnestness.  The  late  vic 
tory  inspirited  the  men,  and  the  future  appeared  brighter.  The 
garrison  was  deprived  of  all  supplies  from  without,  yet  Major 
Preston,  in  daily  expectation  of  relief  from  Governor  Carleton, 
then  at  Montreal,  held  out  manfully. 

Carleton  was  at  the  head  of  one  hundred  regulars,  several  hun 
dred  Canadians  from  the  northward  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  a  few 
Indians.  He  had  been  assured  of  the  co-operation  of  Colonel 
Maclean,  an  experienced  Scotch  soldier,  who  had  served  the  British 
king  during  the  Scottish  rebellion  thirty  years  before.  That  vet 
eran  had  enlisted  three  hundred  Highlanders  at  Quebec,  and  formed 
them  into  a  battalion,  called  "The  Royal  Highland  Emigrants." 
He  was  to  ascend  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  mouth  of  the  Sorel, 
march  along  the  banks  of  that  river  and  join  Carleton  at  St.  John 
in  the  relief  of  the  garrison. 

The  capture  of  Chamblee  accelerated  the  movements  of  Carleton, 

*  In  a  letter  to  his  brother-in-law,  Robert  Livingston,  written  at  St.  John,  Montgomery  said  : 
"For  some  time  past  matters  have  worn  a  gloomy  appearance.  The  prospect  now  clears  up  and  I 
have  the  pleasure  to  tell  you,  that  the  fort  of  Chamblee  has  fallen  into  our  hands ....  It  was  a 
plan  of  the  Canadians ;  and  we  have  gotten  as  much  powder  at  Chambl6e  as  will,  I  hope,  finish  our 
business  here.  I  have  strong  detachments  at  Laprairie,  Longueuil,  and  Caghnawga ;  and  I  believe 
everybody  on  this  side  the  St.  Lawrence  are  our  friends  —  indeed  the  whole  are  except  the  noblesse  .... 
The  difficulties  I  have  labored  under  from  want  of  discipline  in  the  troops  (being  all  generals  and 
few  soldiers),  want  of  provisions,  ammunition,  and  men,  have  made  me  most  heartily  sick  of  this 
business,  and  I  do  think  that  no  consideration  can  ever  induce  me  again  to  step  out  of  the  path  of 
private  life.  As  a  volunteer  1  shall  ever  be  ready  when  necessity  requires,  to  take  my  part  of  the 
burden.'' — Autograph  Letter,  October  20,  1775 


JET.  43.]  THE  REPUBLICANS  VICTORIOUS.  679 

and  on  the  morning  of  the  thirty-first  of  October,  he  embarked  his 
motley  force  upon  the  St.  Lawrence  in  thirty-four  batteaux  and 
flatboats,  and  attempted  to  land  at  Longueuil,  a  mile  and  a  half 
below  the  city.  Colonel  Seth  Warner,  with  a  detachment  of  three 
hundred  Green-Mountain  Boys  and  New-Yorkers,  was  on  the  alert 
in  the  neighborhood,  and  lay  in  covert  where  Carleton  was  about 
to  land.  He  allowed  the  boats  to  get  very  near  the  shore,  when 
he  opened  a  terrible  storm  of  grape-shot  from  a  four-pound  cannon, 
and  volleys  of  musketry,  which  drove  them  back  in  great  confusion. 
Carleton  retreated  to  Montreal,  leaving  behind  him  some  killed  and 
wounded,  and  four  prisoners. 

Maclean,  meanwhile,  had  landed  at  the  mouth  of  the  Sorel,  and 
had  increased  his  force  by  pressing  into  his  service  several  Cana 
dians  in  that  neighborhood.  He  was  marching  toward  St.  John 
with  full  expectations  of  success,  when  he  was  met  by  Majors 
Brown  and  Livingston,  flushed  with  their  victory  at  Chamblee, 
their  forces  strengthened  by  some  Green-Mountain  Boys.  Maclean 
was  driven  back  to  his  place  of  debarkation,  where  he  heard  of  the 
repulse  of  Carleton.  There  his  Canadian  recruits  deserted  him, 
and  his  Highlanders  were  panic-stricken  by  the  perils  that  envi 
roned  them.  They  were  all  hastily  embarked,  and  before  the 
pursuers  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Sorel,  the  Scotchmen  were 
fairly  on  their  way  to  Quebec.  The  Americans  took  post  at  that 
point,  erected  batteries,  and  prepared  to  oppose  the  passage  of 
British  vessels  up  or  down  the  St.  Lawrence. 

Warner  sent  his  prisoners,  taken  at  Longueuil,  to  Montgomery's 
camp  on  the  day  after  the  skirmish  and  repulse.  They  arrived 
toward  evening,  while  the  guns  from  the  American  batteries  were 
playing  upon  the  British  works.  This  had  been  continued  for  sev 
eral  hours.  They  were  immediately  silenced,  and  a  flag  with  a 
letter,  accompanied  by  one  of  the  Canadian  prisoners,  was  sent  in 
to  Preston,  to  acquaint  him  with  the  repulse  of  Carleton,  and  to 
demand  an  instant  surrender  of  the  post.  Major  Preston  affected 
a  disbelief  of  the  reported  repulse,  and  asked  for  a  delay  of  four 
days.  The  request  was  denied,  and  the  demand  was  renewed. 


680  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Threatened  with  famine,  and  perceiving  no  hope  of  relief,  the 
gallant  Preston  surrendered  the  fort  and  garrison  into  the  hands  of 
the  republicans  on  the  following  morning,  the  second  of  November. 
The  siege  had  continued  six  weeks,  and  the  bravery  and  fortitude 
of  the  British  troops  had  been  so  marked,  that  Montgomery  granted 
them  the  most  honorable  terms.  They  marched  out  of  the  fort 
with  the  honors  of  war,  and  grounded  their  arms  on  the  plain  in 
the  rear.  The  officers  were  allowed  to  keep  their  side-arms ;  and 
the  baggage  of  both  officers  and  men  were  secured  to  them.  The 
latter  were  also  allowed  each  a  new  suit  of  clothes  from  the  cap 
tured  stores.  This  was  carrying  courtesy  a  little  too  far,  under  the 
circumstances,  for  many  of  the  victorious  troops  were  half-naked, 
and  the  rigors  of  a  Canadian  winter  were  just  upon  them.  Both 
officers  and  men  murmured,  and  demanded  a  reconsideration  of  the 
capitulation  by  Montgomery.  But  that  noble  man  firmly  refused, 
notwithstanding  the  loud  tones  of  mutinous  discontent  were  heard 
on  every  side.  "  I  would  not  have  sullied  my  own  reputation,  nor 
disgraced  the  continental  arms  by  such  a  breach  of  capitulation  for 
the  universe,"  Montgomery  afterward  said. 

The  captured  garrison  consisted  of  about  five  hundred  British 
regulars,  and  one  hundred  Canadian  volunteers.  Of  the  latter 
there  were  several  nobles,  who  were  leading  men  in  the  province ; 
and  among  the  officers  was  Major  Andre,  the  unfortunate  spy  in 
after-years.  Also  Captain  Aubury  and  Lieutenant  Anstruther,  who 
were  exchanged,  and  again  made  prisoners  with  Burgoyne  at  Sara 
toga.  The  former  afterward  published  two  interesting  volumes 
concerning  his  sojourn  in  America.  These  prisoners  were  all  sent, 
in  boats,  to  Ticonderoga,  and  Montgomery  then  prepared  to  march 
upon  Montreal. 

We  will  leave  the  victorious  continentals  at  St.  John,  and  con 
sider  the  co-operation  of  the  expedition  planned  by  Washington  at 
Cambridge. 


.  43.]  PLAN  FOR  INVADING  CANADA.  681 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 

MEMBERS  OF  THE    CONTINENTAL  CONGRESS    AT  CAMBRIDGE WASHINGTON'S    PLAN 

FOR  INVADING  CANADA ARNOLD  AT  WATERTOWN HIS  RECEPTION  AT  HEAD 
QUARTERS HIS  MILITARY  QUALITIES ARNOLD  AND  GATES ARNOLD  COMMIS 
SIONED  A  COLONEL  IN  THE  CONTINENTAL  ARMY EXPEDITION  AGAINST  CANADA 

ARRANGED ARNOLD  APPOINTED  TO  THE  COMMAND  HIS  PUBLIC  AND  PRIVATE 

INSTRUCTIONS DEPARTURE  FROM  NEWBURYPORT VOYAGE  UP  THE  KENNEBEC 

MARCH  THROUGH  THE  WILDERNESS RETURN  OF  A  DETACHMENT HARD 
SHIPS DESCENT  OF  THE  CHAUDIERE ARRIVAL  UPON  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE. 

SOON  after  the  adjournment  of  the  continental  Congress,  on  the 
first  of  August,  several  of  the  delegates,  especially  those  of  New 
England,  visited  the  camp  at  Cambridge,  and  conferred  with  Wash 
ington  concerning  the  future  operations  of  the  army.  They  did 
not  appear  in  an  official  capacity,  but  the  commander-in-chief  con 
sulted  them  freely,  and  received  their  opinions  with  great  deference. 
To  them  he  submitted  a  plan  of  co-operation  with  General  Schuyler 
in  the  conquest  of  Canada,  which  then  occupied  his  mind.  They 
approved  of  it,  and  preparations  for  an  expedition  across  the  coun 
try,  by  way  of  the  Kennebec  and  Chaudiere  rivers,  to  attack 
Quebec,  was  resolved  upon.  Washington,  as  we  have  seen,  com 
municated  an  outline  of  his  plan  to  General  Schuyler,  in  a  letter 
dated  the  twentieth  of  August,  but  deferred  his  final  determination 
until  he  should  hear  from  the  latter.  Schuyler  was  delighted  with 
the  plan ;  and  by  the  time  his  approval  reached  the  commander-in- 
chief  the  scheme  was  matured,  and  the  expedition  was  almost 
ready  for  departure. 

Colonel  Benedict  Arnold,  who  had  left  Lake  Champlain  in  anger, 
and  was  sorely  chafed  by  disappointment,  was  then  at  Watertown, 
engaged  in  settling  his  accounts  with  the  committee  of  safety. 
Notwithstanding  his  conduct  had  been  represented  in  a  very  un- 


682  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

favorable  light,  and  himself  as  a  rash  and  ungovernable  adventurer, 
Washington  viewed  the  whole  matter  dispassionately,  appreciated 
his  services,  admired  his  bravery  and  zeal,  and  received  him  in  a 
friendly  manner  at  headquarters.  When  Arnold's  own  story  was 
told  and  admitted  facts  corroborated  it,  the  tide  of  feeling  that  was 
rising  strongly  against  him,  instantly  ebbed,  and  he  found  himself 
borne  upon  a  flood  of  popular  sympathy,  especially  where  the 
nature  of  his  services  and  the  material  of  the  force  on  the  lakes 
were  best  known.  In  this  sympathy  Washington  participated. 
Arnold's  valor  and  patriotism  were  undoubted,  and  his  rashness,  so 
called,  was  softened  into  indiscretion,  when  judged  by  the  logic  of 
the  circumstances  in  which  he  had  been  placed.  He  was  adven 
turous,  a  good  military  tactician  and  disciplinarian,  and  had  the 
faculty  of  inspiring  his  troops  with  his  own  zeal  and  courage. 
These  were  exactly  the  qualities  most  needed  in  the  leader  of  an 
expedition  like  the  one  under  consideration ;  and  Washington,  with 
his  usual  discrimination,  appointed  him  to  the  command  of  it,  and 
commissioned  him  a  colonel  in  the  continental  army. 

Before  this  appointment  Arnold  appears  to  have  had  some  enter 
prise  in  contemplation,  which  he  had  communicated  to  Adjutant- 
General  Gates,  who,  at  that  early  period,  was  beginning  to  forget 
the  favors  he  had  received  from  the  commander-in-chief,  and  was 
meditating  independent  schemes.  That  officer,  as  in  duty  bound, 
laid  Arnold's  plans  before  Washington.  The  latter  had  an  inter 
view  with  the  zealous  colonel,  and  the  continental  commission 
speedily  followed.* 

*  On  the  twenty-fifth  of  August,  Gates  addressed  the  following  letter  to  Arnold,  from  head 
quarters  : — 

"  SIR  :  I  am  confident  you  told  me  last  night  that  you  did  not  intend  to  leave  Cambridge  entirely, 
until  the  express  sent  by  your  friend  returned  from  General  Schuyler.  Lest  I  should  have  been 
mistaken,  I  am  directed  by  his  excellency,  General  Washington,  to  request  you  to  resolve  to  wait 
the  return  of  that  express.  I  have  laid  your  plans  before  the  general,  who  will  converse  with  you 
upon  it  when  you  next  meet.  Your  answer  by  the  bearer  will  oblige,  sir,  your  affectionate  humble 
servant,  "  HORATIO  GATES,  Adjutant- General. 

"  To  Colonel  ARNOLD,  at  Watertown." 

The  above  letter  was  first  published  in  Kichardson's  "Historical  Magazine,"  for  December,  1857, 
with  a  note  from  the  person  who  communicated  it,  who  pronounced  it  "interesting,  as  showing  that 
the  plan  [the  expedition  against  Quebec]  was  entirely  original"  with  Arnold.  The  date  and  tenor 
of  Washington's  letter  to  Schuyler  on  the  twentieth,  and  the  date  of  Gates's  to  Arnold  above  quoted, 
show  that  Arnold  did  not  originate  the  expedition  arranged  by  the  commander-in-chief. 


JET.  43.]  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  QUEBEC.  683 

Preparations  for  the  expedition  were  immediately  made.  A 
detachment  of  about  eleven  hundred  men  was  organized  for  the 
purpose,  consisting  of  ten  companies  of  New  England  infantry  (a 
part  of  them  from  General  Greene's  Rhode  Island  brigade),  three 
rifle  companies  from  Pennsylvania  (one  of  them  commanded  by 
Daniel  Morgan),  and  a  number  of  volunteers.  Among  the  latter 
was  Aaron  Burr,  a  lad  of  nineteen  years,  who  was  a  wayward 
grandson  of  the  famous  theologian,  Jonathan  Edwards,  and  des 
tined  to  occupy  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  annals  of  his  country. 
He  had  been  at  Cambridge  for  some  time,  waiting  for  an  oppor 
tunity  to  serve  his  country  in  a  manner  suited  to  his  peculiar  views, 
and  was  now  confined  to  his  bed  by  sickness.  Hearing  of  this 
expedition,  he  immediately  arose,  dressed  himself,  and  with  five  or 
six  intimate  friends,  joined  Arnold  at  Newburyport.  We  shall 
hereafter  meet  Burr  in  the  camp,  the  field,  and  the  arena  of  politi 
cal  strife. 

Arnold  was  invested  with  ample  and  even  extraordinary  powers, 
for  his  expedition  was  of  a  nature  that  required  much  to  be  left  to 
the  discretion  of  the  leader.  He  was  well  acquainted  with  Quebec 
and  its  neighborhood,  having  recently  carried  on  a  trade  in  horses 
between  that  city  and  the  West  Indies.  His  field-officers  were 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Christopher  Greene  of  Rhode  Island  (afterward 
the  brave  defender  of  Fort  Mercer,  at  Red-Bank),  Lieutenant  Roger 
Enos,  and  Majors  Meigs  and  Bigelow,  of  Connecticut;  and  the 
whole  detachment  were  well  prepared  for  the  perilous  enterprise. 

Arnold's  ambition  was  now  gratified;  and  only  ten  days  before 
Colonel  Allen,  his  despised  rival  on  Lake  Champlain,  was  made  a 
prisoner  in  irons,  the  former  left  Cambridge  with  a  chosen  corps  of 
over  a  thousand  men,  arranged  by  the  commander-in-chief  for  the 
invasion  of  Canada,  under  circumstances  that  promised  success. 
He  struck  his  tents  on  the  thirteenth  of  September,  and  the  de 
tachment  marched  for  Newburyport  to  embark  for  the  mouth  of 
the  Kennebec.  On  the  fourteenth  Washington  placed  in  Arnold's 
hands  the  following  instructions : — 

"  1.  You  are  immediately,  on  their  march   from  Cambridge,  to 


G84  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOUR  APHY.  [1775. 

take  the  command  of  the  detachment  from  the  continental  army 
against  Quebec,  and  use  all  possible  expedition,  as  the  winter  season 
is  now  advancing,  and  the  success  of  this  enterprise,  under  God, 
depends  wholly  upon  the  spirit  with  which  it  is  pushed,  and  the 
favorable  dispositions  of  the  Canadians  and  Indians. 

"  2.  When  you  come  to  Newburyport  you  are  to  make  all  pos 
sible  inquiry,  what  men-of-war  or  cruisers  there  may  be  on  the 
coast,  to  which  this  detachment  may  be  exposed  on  their  voyage  to 
the  Kennebec  river ;  and  if  you  should  find  that  there  is  danger  of 
your  being  intercepted,  you  are  not  to  proceed  by  water,  but  by 
land,  taking  care,  on  the  one  hand,  not  to  be  diverted  by  light  and 
vague  reports,  and  on  the  other,  not  to  expose  the  troops  rashly  to 
a  danger  which,  by  many  judicious  persons,  has  been  deemed  very 
considerable. 

"  3.  You  are,  by  every  means  in  your  power,  to  endeavor  to  dis 
cover  the  real  sentiments  of  the  Canadians  toward  our  cause,  and 
particularly  as  to  this  expedition,  bearing  in  mind,  that  if  they  are 
averse  to  it,  and  will  not  co-operate,  or  at  least  willingly  acquiesce, 
it  must  fail  of  success.  In  this  case,  you  are  by  no  means  to  prose 
cute  the  attempt;  the  expense  of  the  expedition,  and  the  disap 
pointment,  are  not  to  be  put  in  competition  with  the  dangerous 
consequences  which  may  ensue  from  irritating  them  against  us,  and 
detaching  them  from  that  neutrality,  which  they  have  adopted. 

"  4.  In  order  to  cherish  those  favorable  sentiments  to  the  Amer 
ican  cause,  that  they  have  manifested,  you  are,  as  soon  as  you  arrive 
in  their  country,  to  disperse  a  number  of  the  addresses  you  will 
have  with  you,  particularly  in  those  parts  where  your  route  will 
lie;*  and  observe  the  strictest  discipline  and  good  order,  by  no 

*  Washington  caused  the  following  "Address  to  the  Inhabitants  of  Canada"  to  be  printed  in 
handbills,  in  the  French  language,  for  Arnold  to  distribute  on  his  arrival  in  that  country  : — 

"FRIENDS  AND  BRETHREN:  The  unnatural  contest  between  the  English  colonies  and  Great 
Britain  has  now  risen  to  such  a  height,  that  arms  alone  must  decide  it.  The  colonies,  confiding  in 
the  justice  of  their  cause,  and  the  purity  of  their  intentions,  have  reluctantly  appealed  to  that  Being 
in  whose  hands  are  all  human  events.  He  has  hitherto  smiled  upon  their  virtuous  efforts,  the  hand 
of  tyranny  has  been  arrested  in  its  ravages,  and  the  British  arms,  which  have  shone  with  so  much 
splendor  in  every  part  of  the  globe,  are  now  tarnished  with  disgrace  and  disappointment.  Generals 
of  approved  experience,  who  boasted  of  subduing  this  great  continent,  find  themselves  circum 
scribed  within  the  limits  of  a  single  city  and  its  suburbs,  suffering  all  the  shame  and  distress  of  a 
siege,  while  the  freeborn  sons  of  America,  animated  by  the  genuine  principles  of  liberty  and  love 


-#/r.  43.]  ADDRESS  TO  THE  CANADIANS.  685 

means  suffering  any  inhabitant  to  be  abused,  or  in  any  manner 
injured,  either  in  his  person  or  property,  punishing  with  exemplary 
severity  every  person  who  shall  transgress,  and  making  ample 
compensation  to  the  party  injured. 

"  5.  You  are  to  endeavor,  on  the  other  hand,  to  conciliate  the 
affections  of  the  people,  and  such  Indians  as  you  may  meet  with, 
by  every  means  in  your  power ;  convincing  them  that  we  come,  at 
the  request  of  many  of  their  principal  people,  not  as  robbers  or  to 
make  war  upon  them,  but  as  friends  and  supporters  of  their  liber 
ties  as  well  as  ours.  And  to  give  efficacy  to  these  sentiments,  you 
must  carefully  inculcate  upon  the  officers  and  soldiers  under  your 
command,  that  not  only  the  good  of  their  country  and  their  honor, 
but  their  safety,  depend  upon  the  treatment  of  these  people. 

"  6.  Check  every  idea,  and  crush,  in  its  earliest  stage,  every  at 
tempt  to  plunder  even  those  who  are  known  to  be  enemies  to  our 

of  their  country,  with  increasing  union,  firmness,  and  discipline,  repel  every  attack,  and  despise 
every  danger. 

"  Above  all,  we  rejoice  that  our  enemies  have  been  deceived  with  regard  to  you.  They  have 
persuaded  themselves,  they  have  even  dared  to  say,  that  the  Canadians  were  not  capable  of  distin 
guishing  between  the  blessings  of  liberty  and  the  wretchedness  of  slavery ;  that  gratifying  the  vanity 
of  a  little  circle  of  nobility  would  blind  the  people  of  Canada.  By  such  artifices  they  hoped  to  bend 
you  to  their  views,  but  they  have  been  deceived ;  instead  of  finding  in  you  a  poverty  of  soul  and 
baseness  of  spirit,  they  see  with  a  chagrin,  equal  to  our  joy,  that  you  are  enlightened,  generous,  and 
virtuous  ;  that  you  will  not  renounce  your  own  rights,  or  serve  as  instruments  to  deprive  your  fel 
low-subjects  of  theirs.  Come  then,  my  brethren,  unite  with  us  in  an  indissoluble  union  ;  let  us  run 
together  to  the  same  goal.  We  have  taken  up  arms  in  defence  of  our  liberty,  our  property,  our 
wives,  and  our  children ;  we  are  determined  to  preserve  them  or  die.  We  look  forward  with  pleas 
ure  to  that  day,  not  far  remote,  we  hope,  when  the  inhabitants  of  America  shall  have  one  sentiment, 
and  the  full  enjoyment  of  the  blessings  of  a  free  government. 

"  Incited  by  these  motives,  and  encouraged  by  the  advice  of  many  friends  of  liberty  among  you, 
the  grand  American  Congress  have  sent  an  army  into  your  province,  under  the  command  of  General 
Schuyler,  not  to  plunder,  but  to  protect  you ;  to  animate  and  bring  into  action  those  sentiments  of 
freedom  you  have  disclosed,  and  which  the  tools  of  despotism  would  extinguish  through  the  whole 
creation.  To  co-operate  with  this  design,  and  to  frustrate  those  cruel  and  perfidious  schemes,  which 
would  deluge  our  frontiers  with  the  blood  of  women  and  children,  I  have  detached  Colonel  Arnold 
into  your  country,  with  a  part  of  the  army  under  my  command.  I  have  enjoined  it  upon  him,  and 
I  am  certain  he  will  consider  himself,  and  act,  as  in  the  country  of  his  patrons  and  best  friends. 
Necessaries  and  accommodations  of  every  kind,  which  you  may  furnish,  he  will  thankfully  receive, 
and  render  the  full  value.  I  invite  you,  therefore,  as  friends  and  brethren,  to  provide  him  with  such 
supplies  as  your  country  affords ;  and  I  pledge  myself,  not  only  for  your  safety  and  security,  but  for 
ample  compensation.  Let  no  man  desert  his  habitation ;  let  no  one  flee  as  before  an  enemy. 

"  The  cause  of  America,  and  of  liberty,  is  the  cause  of  every  virtuous  American  citizen ;  what 
ever  may  be  his  religion  or  descent,  the  United  Colonies  know  no  distinction  but  such  as  slavery, 
corruption,  and  arbitrary  dominion  may  create.  Come,  then,  ye  generous  citizens,  range  yourselves 
under  the  standard  of  general  liberty,  against  which  all  the  force  and  artifices  of  tyranny  will  never 
be  able  to  prevail." 


680  WASHINGTON :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

cause.  It  will  create  dreadful  apprehensions  in  our  friends,  and, 
when  it  is  once  begun,  no  one  can  tell  where  it  will  stop.  I,  there- 
there,  again  most  expressly  order,  that  it  be  discouraged  and  pun 
ished  in  every  instance  without  distinction. 

"  7.  Any  king's  stores  which  you  shall  be  so  fortunate  as  to  pos 
sess  yourself  of,  are  to  be  secured  for  the  continental  use,  agreeably 
to  the  rules  and  regulations  of  war  published  by  the  honorable 
Congress.  The  officers  and  men  may  be  assured,  that  any  extra 
ordinary  services  performed  by  them  will  be  suitably  rewarded. 

"  8.  Spare  neither  pain  nor  expense  to  gain  all  possible  intelli 
gence  on  your  march,  to  prevent  surprises  and  accidents  of  every 
kind,  and  endeavor,  if  possible,  to  correspond  with  General  Schuyler, 
so  that  you  may  act  in  concert  with  him.  This,  I  think,  may  be 
done  by  means  of  the  St.  Francis  Indians. 

"  9.  In  case  of  a  union  with  General  Schuyler,  or  if  he  should 
be  in  Canada  upon  your  arrival  there,  you  are  by  no  means  to  con 
sider  yourself  as  upon  a  separate  and  independent  command,  but 
are  to  put  yourself  under  him  and  follow  his  directions.  Upon  this 
occasion,  and  all  others,  I  recommend  most  earnestly  to  avoid  all 
contention  about  rank.  In  such  a  cause,  every  post  is  honorable  in 
which  a  man  can  serve  his  country. 

"  10.  If  Lord  Chatham's  son  should  be  in  Canada,  and  in  any 
way  should  fall  into  your  power,  you  are  enjoined  to  treat  him 
with  all  possible  deference  and  respect.  You  can  not  err  in  paying 
too  much  honor  to  the  son  of  so  illustrious  a  character,  and  so  true 
a  friend  to  America.*  Any  other  prisoners,  who  may  fall  into  your 

*  Lord  Pitt  was  a  younger  son  of  the  earl  of  Chatham,  and  was  aid-de-camp  to  Sir  Guy  Carle- 
ton  during  the  summer  of  1775.  When  the  movements  on  Lake  Champlain  indicated  a  speedy 
war,  Chatham,  whose  friendship  for  the  Americans  would  not  allow  him  to  permit  his  son  to  draw 
his  sword  against  them,  became  uneasy.  In  July  he  was  too  ill  to  attend  even  to  private  business, 
and  at  that  time  his  wife,  the  countess  of  Chatham,  wrote  a  very  judicious  letter  to  Major  Caldwell, 
then  at  Quebec,  concerning  their  son,  intimating  their  unwillingness  to  have  him  engaged  in  a  war 
upon  the  colonists.  "  I  can  not  help  feeling,"  she  said,  "  a  pity  for  poor  people  who  are  irritated  to 
the  utmost,  from  an  opinion  of  being  greatly  injured :  otherwise,  I  assure,  sir,  though  full  of  mater 
nal  tenderness  to  my  son,  I  should  have  been  happy  in  his  having  had  occasion  of  proving  the  ardor 
of  that  courage  which  I  flatter  myself  is  in  him." — Chatham  Correspondence,  iv.,  412. 

Pursuant  to  the  advice  of  his  parents,  and  the  convictions  of  his  own  heart,  young  Pitt  left  the 
military  family  of  Carleton,  and  returned  to  England,  bearing  despatches  from  his  general  to  the 
ministry,  dated  at  Montreal,  the  twenty-first  of  September,  1775. 


JET.  43.1  ARNOLD'S  INSTRUCTIONS.  687 

hands,  you  will  treat  with  as  much  humanity  and  kindness  as  may 
be  consistent  with  your  own  safety  and  the  public  interest.  Be 
very  particular  in  restraining,  not  only  your  own  troops,  but  the 
Indians,  from  all  acts  of  cruelty  and  insult,  which  will  disgrace  the 
American  arms,  and  irritate  our  fellow-subjects  against  us. 

"  11.  You  will  be  particularly  careful  to  pay  the  full  value  for  all 
provisions,  or  other  accommodations,  which  the  Canadians  may 
provide  for  you  on  your  march.  By  no  means  press  them,  or  any 
of  their  cattle  into  your  service,  but  amply  compensate  those  who 
voluntarily  assist  you.  For  this  purpose,  you  are  provided  with  a 
sum  of  money  in  specie,  which  you  will  use  with  as  much  frugality 
and  economy  as  your  necessities  and  good  policy  will  admit,  keep 
ing  as  exact  an  account  as  possible  of  your  disbursements. 

"  12.  You  are,  by  every  opportunity,  to  inform  me  of  your  prog 
ress,  your  prospects,  and  intelligence,  and  upon  any  important 
occurrence,  to  send  an  express. 

"  13.  As  the  season  is  now  far  advanced,  you  are  to  make  all 
possible  despatch ;  but  if  unforeseen  difficulties  should  arise,  or  if 
the  weather  should  become  so  severe  as  to  render  it  hazardous  to 
proceed,  in  your  own  judgment  and  that  of  your  principal  officers, 
whom  you  are  to  consult — in  that  case  you  are  to  return,  giving 
me  as  early  notice  as  possible,  that  I  may  render  you  such  assist 
ance  as  may  be  necessary. 

"  14.  As  the  contempt  of  the  religion  of  a  country  by  ridiculing 
any  of  its  ceremonies,  or  affronting  its  ministers  or  its  votaries,  has 
ever  been  deeply  resented,  you  are  to  be  particularly  careful  to 
restrain  every  officer  and  soldier  from  such  imprudence  and  folly, 
and  to  punish  every  instance  of  it.  On  the  other  hand,  as  far  as 
lies  in  your  power,  you  are  to  protect  and  support  the  free  exercise 
of  the  religion  of  the  country,  and  the  undisturbed  enjoyment  of 
the  rights  of  conscience  in  religious  matters  with  your  utmost 
influence  and  authority." 

In  addition  to  these  instructions,  Washington,  on  the  same  day, 
addressed  a  private  letter  to  Colonel  Arnold,  reminding  him  that  he 
was  about  to  start  on  an  expedition  of  great  consequence,  and  that 


688  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

his  own  honor,  and  the  safety  and  welfare  of  the  continent,  de 
pended,  in  a  great  measure,  upon  his  conduct  and  courage  in  the 
command  of  it.  He  charged  him,  and  his  officers  and  soldiers,  as 
they  valued  their  own  safety  and  honor,  and  the  favor  and  esteem 
of  their  country,  to  consider  themselves  as  marching  not  through 
the  land  of  an  enemy,  but  of  friends  and  countrymen,  and  to  regu 
late  their  conduct  toward  the  Canadians  and  Indians  accordingly. 
He  reiterated  the  charge  in  his  instructions,  concerning  the  respect 
due  to  the  religious  feelings  of  the  inhabitants,  and  said,  "  While 
we  are  contending  for  own  liberty,  we  should  be  very  cautious  not 
to  violate  the  rights  of  conscience  in  others,  ever  considering  that 
God  alone  is  the  judge  of  the  hearts  of  men,  and  to  him  only,  in 
this  case,  they  are  answerable." 

Thus  furnished  with  instructions  and  suggestions,  and  a  supply 
of  addresses  to  the  Canadian  people,  Arnold  hastened  to  New- 
buryport,  and  on  Monday,  the  eighteenth  of  September,  embarked 
his  troops  on  eleven  transports,  and  left  the  harbor  the  next  morn 
ing.  They  all  reached  Gardiner  in  safety,  after  a  night  of  tempest 
—  wind,  lightning,  and  rain.  Two  hundred  batteaux,  constructed 
by  carpenters  who  had  been  previously  sent  for  the  purpose,  were 
ready  for  them  at  Pittston,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  The 
little  fleet  proceeded  up  the  Kennebec  as  far  as  the  tide  would 
permit,  where  the  troops  went  on  board  the  batteaux,  with  their 
stores,  and  pushed  on  to  Fort  Western,  opposite  the  present  town 
of  Augusta,  the  designated  place  of  rendezvous.  This  was  on  the 
verge  of  the  wilderness.  It  was  the  frontier  settlement,  and  be 
yond  it,  toward  Norridgewock  falls,  only  a  log  house  here  and 
there  appeared. 

The  way  before  the  little  army  was  now  dark  and  perilous,  and 
chilly  nights  succeeded  bright  and  pleasant  days.  They  were  not 
wholly  without  a  guide,  however.  Colonel  Montressor,  a  British 
officer,  had  traversed  this  wilderness  fifteen  years  earlier.  He  came 
from  Quebec,  ascended  the  Chaudiere,  crossed  the  Highlands  near 
the  head-waters  of  the  Penobscot,  passed  through  Moosehead  lake, 
and  entered  the  east  branch  of  the  Kennebec.  Arnold  possessed 


JEf.  43.]  THE  ARMY  IN  THE  WILDERNESS.  689 

an  imperfect  copy  of  the  printed  Journal  of  Montressor,  and  also  a 
set  of  plans  and  a  journal,  furnished  by  Samuel  Goodwin,  of  Pow- 
nalborough,  in  Maine,  who  had  resided  in  that  country  as  a  sur 
veyor  for  twenty-five  years.  Goodwin  was  well  acquainted  with 
the  Kennebec  and  the  Chaudiere,  and  the  country  between ;  and 
the  information  received  from  him  was  of  great  consequence  to  the 
leader  of  the  expedition. 

Arnold  sent  forward  a  small  reconnoitring  party  to  Lake  Megan- 
tic  or  Chaudiere  pond,  and  another  to  survey  the  course  and  dis 
tances  of  the  Dead  river,  a  tributary  of  the  Kennebec.  The  main 
body,  meanwhile,  moved  forward  in  four  divisions,  a  day  apart,  in 
time.  Morgan  and  his  riflemen  formed  the  van.  Greene  and  Bige- 
low,  with  their  companies  of  musketeers,  followed  next ;  then  Meigs 
with  four  other  companies ;  and  the  rear  was  composed  of  three 
companies  under  Enos.  Arnold  was  the  last  to  leave  Fort  Western. 
He  proceeded  in  a  birch  canoe,  passed  several  parties  in  batteaux, 
and  upon  a  beautiful  plain  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Kennebec,  at 
Norridgewock  falls,  he  overtook  Morgan  and  his  riflemen. 

Now  the  first  severe  toils  and  trials  of  the  little  army  began.  They 
had  already  been  compelled  to  carry  their  boats,  provisions,  and  bag 
gage  around  several  falls  and  rapids ;  here  up  rocky  and  precipitous 
banks  all  these  had  to  be  conveyed  for  a  mile  and  a  quarter. 
When  they  reached  the  navigable  waters  above,  they  discovered 
their  boats  to  be  leaky,  and  much  of  their  provisions  spoiled  or 
greatly  damaged.  Yet  they  pushed  forward  with  cheerfulness,  for 
the  weather  was  fine,  and  the  events  of  every  hour  gave  food  to 
excitement.  But  the  great  fatigues  and  hardships  endured,  at 
length  made  the  weak  and  timid  falter;  and  when  the  troops 
arrived  at  the  great  carrying-place,  twelve  miles  below  the  junction 
of  the  Dead  river  and  the  Kennebec,  early  in  October,  sickness  and 
desertion  had  reduced  the  number  of  effective  men  to  about  nine 
hundred  and  fifty.  Here  the  stream  had  become  so  rapid,  that  the 
men  with  the  batteaux  had  waded  more  than  half  the  time,  for 
many  miles,  pushing  their  vessels  against  the  current.  Yet  the 
strong  kept  their  spirits,  for  they  were  filled  with  the  enthusiasm 

44 


690  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  their  leader.  From  this  point  Lieutenants  Steele  and  Church 
were  sent  forward,  with  a  party  to  explore  and  clear  the  portages ; 
and  Jakins,  a  Canadian,  was  despatched  to  the  French  settlements 
on  the  Chaudiere,  to  ascertain  the  political  sentiments  of  the  people. 
Two  Indians  were  sent  forward  with  Jakins  to  carry  letters,  one 
to  General  Schuyler,  on  Lake  Champlain,  and  the  other  to  some 
friend  of  the  cause  in  Quebec.  They  betrayed  their  trusts,  for  the 
latter  delivered  the  letter  in  his  charge  to  the  lieutenant-governor 
of  the  province,  and  General  Schuyler  never  received  the  com 
munication  directed  to  him. 

At  this  great  carrying-place,  where  the  portage  was  fifteen  miles, 
broken  by  ponds,  Arnold  examined  his  muster-roll  and  commis 
sariat.  The  troops  were  generally  strong  arm  zealous,  and  twenty- 
five  days'  provisions  were  in  store.  The  French  settlements  on  the 
Chaudiere,  where  food  might  be  obtained,  he  estimated  to  be  at  a 
distance  of  about  ten  days'  travel.  The  lovely  Indian  summer  had 
just  commenced,  and  the  forest  had  the  appearance  of  early  Sep 
tember.  The  future  looked  encouraging,  and  with  great  alacrity 
the  whole  expedition  moved  forward  toward  Lake  Megan  tic,  or 
Chaudiere  pond,  which  Arnold  had  designated  as  a  general  rendez 
vous  before  entering  Canada. 

The  nature  of  the  march  was  such,  that  order  and  discipline 
were  out  of  the  question.  Every  man  not  engaged  in  portage, 
was  left  to  his  own  judgment  in  making  his  way  through  the 
woods,  while  those  in  charge  of  the  batteaux,  baggage,  and  stores, 
had  a  most  wearisome  labor.  A  part  of  the  way  the  vessels  were 
drawn  on  sleds,  by  oxen,  while  the  baggage  and  stores  were 
carried  on  the  shoulders  of  the  men.  Over  craggy  knolls  and 
tangled  ravines,  through  deep  morasses,  creeks,  and  ponds,  they 
pursued  their  way  until  late  in  October,  when  they  launched  their 
batteaux  on  the  Dead  river.  The  clear  waters  of  the  ponds  had 
furnished  them  with  ample  quantities  of  salmon-trout;  and  up  to 
this  hour  there  had  been  no  lack  of  food. 

The  surface  of  the  Dead  river  was  smooth,  and  the  waters  flowed 
on  in  a  gentle  current  in  the  midst  of  the  magnificent  forest,  now 


TEr.  43.]  PERILS  OF  THE  WILDERNESS.  C91 

rendered  gorgeous  by  the  brilliant  hues  imparted  to  the  foliage  by 
nightly  frosts.  Occasional  falls  interrupted  their  progress,  by  caus 
ing  short  portages,  but  the  labors  of  the  men  were  far  less  severe 
than  they  had  hitherto  been.  Suddenly  the  river  became  rapid, 
and  the  monotony  of  the  vast  forest  was  broken  by  the  appearance 
of  a  lofty  mountain  covered  with  snow.  At  its  foot  Arnold  en 
camped  three  days,  and  raised  the  continental  flag  over  his  tent. 
While  there,  Major  Bigelow  and  a  small  party  ascended  the  moun 
tain,  expecting  to  see  the  spires  of  Quebec  from  its  summit,  but 
they  were  disappointed.  At  this  place  of  encampment  is  now  a 
small  hamlet  called  Flagstaff,  in  commemoration  of  the  event ;  and 
the  lofty  eminence  bears  the  name  of  Mount  Bigelow,  in  honor  of 
the  gallant  major. 

A  heavy  rain  commenced  falling  on  the  twenty-first,  just  as  the 
expedition  struck  their  tents  and  moved  forward.  It  continued 
with  increasing  copiousness ;  and  the  torrents  rushing  from  the  hills 
swelled  the  river  so  suddenly,  that  it  arose  eight  feet  in  one  night. 
The  flood  came  roaring  down  the  valley  wherein  the  Americans 
were  encamped,  so  suddenly  and  powerfully,  that  the  soldiers  had 
barely  time  to  retreat  to  their  batteaux,  before  the  whole  plain  was 
transformed  into  a  lake.  Seven  boats  were  overturned,  and  the 
provisions  in  them  lost,  and  others  were  in  imminent  peril  in  the 
midst  of  the  waters.  Only  twelve  days'  provision  now  remained. 
They  were  yet  thirty  miles  from  Chaudiere  pond,  and  separated 
from  it  by  a  most  frightful  country  over  which  to  travel  and  con 
vey  their  baggage  and  stores.  The  storm  and  exposure  made 
many  sick.  Despondency  supplanted  cheerfulness  in  the  minds 
of  the  troops ;  and  now,  for  the  first  time,  a  dark  cloud  seemed  to 
be  gathering  over  the  expedition. 

A  council  of  war  was  held  on  the  twenty-third  of  October,  when 
it  was  resolved  to  despatch  Captain  Hanchet  and  sixty  men  toward 
the  settlements,  with  ten  days'  provisions ;  and  to  send  the  sick  and 
feeble  back  to  Norridgewock,  while  the  healthy  should  press  forward 
with  vigor.  Arnold  directed  Greene  and  Enos,  who  were  in  the 
rear,  to  select  as  many  of  their  best  men  as  they  could  supply  with 


G92  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

fifteen  days'  provisions,  and  come  on  with  them,  leaving  the  others 
to  return  to  Norridgewock.  Enos,  either  through  a  false  construc 
tion  of  the  order,  or  wilful  disobedience,  returned  to  Cambridge 
with  his  whole  division.  His  appearance  there  excited  the  greatest 
indignation  in  the  continental  camp,  and  he  was  regarded  as  a 
traitor  who  had  deserted  his  companions  and  endangered  the 
whole  expedition,  until  a  court-martial  acquitted  him,  on  the 
ground  that  he  was  short  of  provisions,  and  could  not  procure  any 
in  the  wilderness.  But  he  had  sacrificed  the  confidence  of  the 
people,  and  he  soon  afterward  left  the  army. 

Meanwhile  Arnold,  with  the  remainder  of  the  troops,  pressed 
onward.  The  cold  increased,  and  the  rain  changed  to  snow.  Ice 
formed  upon  the  water  in  which  the  men  waded,  pushing  the  batr 
teaux  through  the  numerous  ponds  and  marshes  in  their  path  at 
the  sources  of  the  Dead  river,  as  they  made  their  way  toward 
Lake  Megantic,  near  the  summit  of  the  water-shed  between 
Canada  and  New  England.  The  records  of  that  march  have  no 
parallel  in  history.  "The  company  were  ten  miles  wading  knee 
deep  among  alders  the  greatest  part  of  the  way,"  says  a  private 
soldier,  in  his  journal,*  "  and  came  to  a  river  which  had  overflowed 
the  land.  We  stopped  some  time,  not  knowing  what  to  do,  and  at 
last  were  obliged  to  wade  through  it,  the  ground  giving  way  under 
us  at  every  step.  We  got  on  a  little  knoll  of  land  and  went  ten 
miles,  where  we  were  obliged  to  stay,  night  coming  on,  and  we  were 
all  cold  and  wet ;  one  man  fainted  in  the  water  with  fatigue  and 
cold,  but  was  helped  along.  We  had  to  wade  into  the  water  and 
chop  down  trees,  and  fetch  the  wood  out  of  the  water,  after  dark,  to 
make  a  fire  to  dry  ourselves.  However,  at  last  we  got  a  fire,  and 
after  eating  a  mouthful  of  pork,  laid  ourselves  down  to  sleep  round 
the  fire,  the  water  surrounding  us  close  to  our  heads.  If  it  had 
rained  hard  it  would  have  overflowed  the  place  we  were  in." 

Two  women,  who  had  followed  their  husbands  in  this  expedition, 

*  Journal  of  James  Melvin,  a  private  in  Captain  Dearborn's  company.  The  original  manuscript 
is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  John  B.  Moreau,  of  the  city  of  New  York.  It  has  been  annotated  by  Mr. 
William  J.  Davis,  and  one  hundred  copies  printe,d  for  private  circulation.  The  journal  continues 
until  August,  the  following  year,  the  writer  then  having  been  seven  months  in  prison,  in  Canada. 


Mr.  43.]  FORTITUDE  OF  WOMEN.  693 

exhibited  the  greatest  fortitude  and  endurance  in  this  part  of  the 
march.  "  One  was  the  wife  of  Sergeant  Grier,"  says  Henry  in  his 
narrative,*  "  a  large,  virtuous,  and  respectable  woman."  The  other 
was  the  wife  of  a  common  soldier  named  Warner.  "  Entering  the 
ponds,"  says  Henry,  "  and  breaking  the  ice  here  and  there  with  the 
butts  of  our  guns,  and  feet,  we  were  soon  waist  deep  in  mud  and  wa 
ter.  As  is  generally  the  case  with  youths,  it  came  to  my  mind  that 
a  better  path  might  be  found  than  that  of  the  more  elderly  guide. 
Attempting  this,  the  water  in  a  trice  cooling  my  armpits,  made  me 
gladly  return  in  the  file.  Now  Mrs.  Grier  had  got  before  me.  My 
mind  was  humbled  yet  astonished,  at  the  exertions  of  this  good 
woman.  Her  clothes  more  than  waist  high,  she  waded  on  before 
me  to  firm  ground.  Not  one,  so  long  as  she  was  known  to  us, 
dared  to  intimate  a  disrespectful  idea  of  her." 

Such  is  a  faint  picture  of  some  of  the  appalling  difficulties  of  the 
march  upon  those  bleak  and  dreary  highlands,  in  the  midst  of  snow 
and  ice.  They  had  passed  seventeen  falls  on  their  way  up  from 
the  Kennebec  to  the  highest  point  of  their  march.  They  crossed  a 
portage  of  four  miles,  and  then  entered  a  small  stream  that  falls 
into  Lake  Megantic.  On  the  twenty-eighth  of  October,  Arnold  and 
a  large  portion  of  the  expedition  reached  the  lake,  and  encamped 
on  its  eastern  shore.  There  they  found  Lieutenants  Steele  and 
Church ;  also  Jakins,  who  had  returned  from  the  French  settle 
ments  with  a  favorable  report.  He  had  distributed  handbills  freely, 
and  kindly  feelings  for  the  republicans  were  everywhere  expressed. 

The  voyage  down  the  Chaudiere  was  fearful.  Soon  after  leaving 
the  lake,  the  current  ran  with  great  rapidity,  boiling  and  foaming 
over  a  rocky  bottom.  Without  a  guide,  they  were  exposed  to 
imminent  peril  every  moment.  They  lashed  their  baggage  and 
provisions  to  the  batteaux,  and  committed  themselves  to  the  mercy 
of  the  stream.  At  length  they  heard  the  fearful  roar  of  rushing 
waters,  and  in  a  few  minutes  they  were  plunging  in  the  midst  of 

*  Judge  John  Joseph  Henry,  who  died  at  the  close  of  the  last  century,  was  one  of  the  soldiers 
in  this  expedition,  and  left  behind  him,  for  the  use  of  his  family,  a  lucid  and  exceedingly  interesting 
narrative  of  the  hardships  and  sufferings  of  that  band  of  heroes.  He  was  then  only  seventeen  years 
of  age. 


69-1  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

rapids.  Three  of  the  vessels  were  dashed  in  pieces  upon  the  rocks, 
and  their  contents  lost,  but  every  life  was  preserved.  The  others 
succeeded  in  obtaining  safe  moorings  in  shallow  estuaries,  while  the 
voyagers  were  busy  in  rescuing  those  in  the  stream. 

This  apparent  misfortune  was  a  mercy  in  disguise,  for  had  they 
not  been  thus  checked,  they  must  all  have  plunged  into  destruction 
over  a  fall  just  beyond,  which  was  discovered  by  one  of  the  rescued 
men.  Passing  around  this  fall,  with  their  boats  and  provisions,  they 
re-entered  the  river,  and  for  seventy  miles  encountered  cataracts 
and  rapids.  At  length  they  all  reached  Sertigan,  the  first  French 
settlement,  four  miles  below  the  mouth  of  Des  Loupis  river,  in 
safety.  There  the  people  were  friendly,  and  sold  provisions  freely. 

When  the  immediate  wants  of  his  own  party  were  supplied, 
Colonel  Arnold  sent  back  some  Canadians  and  Indians  with  flour 
and  cattle  for  the  approaching  troops.  This  relief  was  timely,  for 
famine  had  seized  the  parties  in  the  wilderness  in  its  inexorable 
grasp.  Their  boats  had  been  broken  and  their  provisions  lost  in 
the  rocky  rapids,  and  all  were  at  the  point  of  starvation.  Their 
last  ox  had  been  slaughtered  and  eaten  three  or  four  days  before, 
and  raw  roots  were  now  devoured  with  avidity.  Dog's  meat  was  a 
luxury ;  and  some  of  the  poor  sufferers  had  carefully  washed  their 
mooseskin  moccasins,  and  boiled  them,  with  the  hope  of  procuring 
a  little  mucilage  to  appease  the  sharp  tooth  of  hunger.*  To  these 
miserable  men  the  lowing  of  approaching  cattle  was  sweetest  music 
for  it  told  of  hope  and  comfort.  They  were  relieved ;  and  in  the 
course  of  a  few  days  they  emerged  from  the  forest  in  detachments, 
and  united  at  Sertigan. 

It  was  now  important  for  Arnold  to  communicate  with  General 
Montgomery.  He  had  formed  a  very  favorable  opinion  of  young 
Burr,  who,  under  every  circumstance  in  the  wilderness,  had  dis- 

*  Captain  Dearborn  (who  arose  to  the  rank  of  colonel  in  the  continental  army,  and  was  the  com- 
mander-in-chief  of  the  land  forces  of  the  United  States  at  the  opening  of  the  war  of  1812)  said,  in 
a  letter  to  Reverend  William  Allen,  the  American  biographer,  "  My  dog  was  very  large  and  a  great 
favorite.  I  gave  him  up  to  several  men  of  Captain  Goodrich's  company,  and  killed  and  divided 
him  among  those  who  were  suffering  most  severely  from  hunger.  They  ate  every  part  of  him,  not 
excepting  his  entrails."  This  circumstance  is  mentioned  in  the  journal  of  Melvin,  from  which  we 
have  just  quoted. 


JE-r.  43.]  BURR'S  PERILOUS  MISSION.  695 

played  cool  courage,  indomitable  perseverance  and  energy,  and 
great  discretion.  He  had  accompanied  Arnold  and  his  party  to 
Sertigan ;  and  thence  the  leader  despatched  him  across  the  country 
with  a  verbal  message  for  Montgomery. 

Burr  disguised  himself  as  a  young  Roman  catholic  priest,  and 
first  presented  himself  to  the  parish  head  at  Sertigan.  His  knowl 
edge  of  Latin  and  smattering  of  French  enabled  him  to  converse 
well,  and  the  reverend  father  received  him  kindly  and  cordially. 
Very  soon  perceiving  that  the  priesthood  and  the  laity  were  discon 
tented  with  British  rule,  Burr  frankly  avowed  his  mission.  The 
good  father,  regarding  him  as  a  mere  child  (for  he  was  very  small 
in  stature  and  effeminate  in  feature)  tried  to  dissuade  him  from 
attempting  the  perilous  journey.  Finding  him  resolute  and  un 
flinching,  the  priest  gave  him  his  blessing,  and  furnished  him  with  a 
confidential  guide.  He  was  passed  from  one  religious  family  to 
another,  and  reached  Montgomery,  at  Montreal,  in  safety,  at  about 
the  middle  of  November.  With  great  clearness  he  laid  before  the 
general  the  character,  condition,  and  intentions  of  the  expedition 
under  Arnold.  Montgomery  had  already  been  informed,  through 
intercepted  letters,  of  Arnold's  approach  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  but 
this  was  the  first  direct  communication  that  he  had  received  from 
him.  He  was  charmed  by  the  manner,  intelligence,  and  enthusiasm 
of  the  messenger,  and  invited  Burr  to  remain  at  headquarters.  He 
did  so,  and  was  with  the  noble  Montgomery  at  the  siege  of  Quebec, 
as  his  aid-de-cainp. 

At  Sertigan  Arnold  was  joined  by  about  forty  Norridgewock 
Indians,  under  the  famous  Natanis  and  his  brother  Sabatis  ;*  and, 
on  the  third  of  November,  facing  a  snow-storm,  the  little  army 
(reduced  to  about  eight  hundred  men)  and  their  allies  started  for 
the  St.  Lawrence.  The  fine  valley  of  the  Chaudiere  lay  before 

*  Natanis  had  been  considered  an  enemy  to  the  Americans,  and  Arnold  had  given  orders  to  his 
advanced  party  to  kill  or  capture  him,  because,  it  was  averred,  he  had  been  employed  by  Gov 
ernor  Carleton  as  a  spy.  But  he  was  a  friend,  and  when  he  deserted  his  cabin  in  the  wilderness,  for 
fear  of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Americans,  he  left  a  rude  map  of  the  river  and  route  toward 
Canada,  drawn  upon  birch  bark.  Natanis  kept  not  far  from  the  expedition  all  the  way  down  the 
Chaudiere,  and  at  Sertigan  ventured  to  come  forward.  He  was  wounded  in  the  siege  of  Quebec, 
and  was  made  a  prisoner.  This  was  the  first  time  that  Indians  were  actually  employed  in  military 
service,  by  the  Americans,  in  the  war  for  independence. — Drake's  Book  of  the  Indians. 


69«  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

them,  filled  with  friendly  inhabitants  and  abundance  of  provisions ; 
and  the  troops  marched  forward  in  fine  spirits,  in  expectation  of  glory 
speedily  to  be  won  by  victory  at  Quebec.  Arnold  scattered  the 
printed  addresses  judiciously ;  and  his  troops  implicitly  obeyed  the 
instructions  given  by  Washington  to  their  leader,  concerning  their 
deportment  toward  the  Canadians.  Everything  received  from  the 
inhabitants  was  promptly  paid  for,  and  the  people  rendered  aid  in 
return  with  a  hearty  good  will.  A  few  years  ago  (1848),  when  the 
writer  visited  that  section,  many  of  the  old  habitans  were  yet  living 
in  the  beautiful  valley,  and  spoke  very  highly  of  "  the  good  Bos- 
tonians,"  whose  passage  through  their  country  was  remembered  as 
one  of  the  greatest  events  in  the  quiet  lives  of  those  isolated  and 
simple  people.  Some  of  the  families  preserved  orders  for  food, 
signed  by  Arnold. 

On  the  ninth  of  November,  Arnold  and  his  followers  arrived  at 
Point  Levi,  opposite  Quebec,  in  the  midst  of  falling  snow,  after 
one  of  the  most  wonderful  marches  on  record,  during  almost  two 
months.  They  had  travelled  more  than  three  hundred  miles,  most 
of  the  time  in  a  gloomy  wilderness.  For  thirty-two  days  they  did 
not  meet  a  human  being,  and  elements  of  destruction  menaced 
them  on  every  side.  Their  preservation  seemed  like  a  miracle. 
Their  existence  and  endeavors  in  the  wilderness  had  been  made 
known  in  Quebec,  by  the  Indian  traitor,  but  no  one  believed  they 
would  ever  reach  the  St.  Lawrence  at  that  late  season  of  the  year. 
Lieutenant-Governor  Cramahe  laughed  at  the  idea  of  such  an  inva 
sion,  yet  he  exercised  a  wise  prudence  in  having  all  boats  kept  on 
the  Quebec  side  of  the  river.  Nobody  expected  the  provincials,  and 
when,  quite  early  in  the  morning,  the  little  army  stood  behind  the 
snow-vail  upon  the  heights  above  Point  Levi,  they  appeared  like 
spectres  to  the  startled  inhabitants.  Some  fled  across  the  river  in 
canoes  and  gave  the  alarm.  The  drums  immediately  beat  to  arms  in 
the  city,  for  the  fears  of  those  who  came  with  the  stirring  message, 
had  greatly  magnified  the  number  and  character  of  the  invaders. 
By  a  mistake  in  a  single  word,  the  alarm  of  the  people  was  much 
increased,  for  the  news  spread  that  the  mysterious  army,  that  had 


Mi\  43.]  SURVIVORS  OF  THE  EXPEDITION.  697 

descended  from  the  wilderness,  were  clad  in  sheet-iron !  Morgan's 
riflemen,  with  their  linen  frocks,  had  first  been  seen,  and  the  Cana 
dians  said  they  were  vetu  en  toile — clothed  in  linen  cloth.  The  last 
word  was  changed  to  idle — iron  plate  —  and  this  was  the  mistake 
that  produced  such  a  fearful  panic. 

In  the  midst  of  a  fierce  storm,  and  in  the  presence  of  a  strong- 
walled  town,  with  disciplined  soldiers  within  it,  Arnold  wrote 
cheerily  to  Montgomery,  declaring  his  intention  to  cross  the  St. 
Lawrence  to  attack  the  enemy,  in  spite  of  the  "Hunter  sloop  and 
Lizard  frigate,"  that  lay  in  the  stream  to  intercept  him.  And  with 
brief  words,  he  congratulated  Montgomery  on  his  victory  at  St. 
John,  intelligence  of  which  had  just  reached  Arnold,  by  an  express 
sent  by  the  former. 

Many  of  the  survivors  of  this  expedition  afterward  became  emi 
nent  men.  Arnold  was  a  major-general,  but  fell  like  "  Lucifer,  son 
of  the  morning."  Burr  became  an  accomplished  soldier,  and  vice- 
president  of  the  United  States.  Samuel  Spring,  the  chaplain  of 
the  corps,  became  a  beloved  doctor  of  divinity;  Daniel  Morgan 
was  an  honored  brigadier-general,  whose  memory  will  ever  remain 
green ;  Dearborn  was  a  colonel  in  the  old  war  for  independence, 
and  the  commander-in-chief  in  that  of  1812 ;  and  Return  J.  Meigs 
was  commissioned  a  colonel,  and  with  Febiger,  the  gallant  Dane 
(who  was  in  this  expedition),  he  did  noble  service  at  Stony  Point 
and  elsewhere.  Matthias  Ogden  became  an  eminent  civilian  in 
New  Jersey ;  Christopher  Greene  nobly  defended  Fort  Mercer,  and 
suffered  martyrdom  in  the  cause  of  Freedom  a  little  later;  and 
Porterfield,  the  gallant  Virginia  captain,  fell  in  battle  at  Cam  den, 
with  the  immortal  De  Kalb.  Others  less  conspicuous,  but  no  less 
deserving,  as  brave  men  and  zealous  patriots,  lived  to  fight  on 
during  the  long  struggle  of  the  revolted  colonists. 


693  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHV.  [1775. 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

MONTGOMERY  DETERMINES    TO    TAKE    MONTREAL UNEASINESS    ABOUT    ARNOLD 

FRESH  INSUBORDINATION MARCH  AGAINST    MONTREAL FLIGHT  OF  CARLETON 

AND  GARRISON INTERCEPTED  AND  CAPTURED  BY  EASTON MONTGOMERY  VIC 
TOR  AT  MONTREAL HEARS  FROM  ARNOLD CARLETON's  ESCAPE ARNOLD  BE 
FORE  QUEBEC CROSSES  THE  RIVER  AND  SCALES  THE  HEIGHTS  OF  ABRAHAM 

SENTIMENTS  OF  THE  PEOPLE INEFFECTUAL  ATTEMPTS  TO  TAKE  THE  CITY RE 
TIRES  TO  POINT  AUX  TREMBLES MONTGOMERY'S  VEXATIONS  AT  MONTREAL 

DESERTION  OF  NEW  ENGLAND  TROOPS SCHUYLER  AND    MONTGOMERY    TALK  OF 

RESIGNING CORRESPONDENCE  WITH  WASHINGTON JUNCTION  OF  THE  FORCES 

UNDER  MONTGOMERY  AND  ARNOLD THEIR  ARRIVAL  AT  QUEBEC. 

IT  was  on  the  same  day  when  Arnold  left  Sertigan  in  a  snow 
storm  for  the  St.  Lawrence,  that  Montgomery's  victory  at  St.  John 
was  consummated,  by  the  formal  surrender  of  that  post  into  his 
hands,  in  the  light  of  an  unclouded  sun.  That  commander,  always 
active  and  vigilant  as  well  as  brave,  resolved  to  secure  the  advan 
tages  he  had  gained,  by  pushing  on  toward  Montreal,  hoping  to 
have  the  co-operation  of  Arnold  below,  in  effecting  its  capture. 
This  would  not  only  be  an  important  victory  in  itself,  but  it  would 
have  such  an  effect  upon  the  Canadians,  that  Quebec,  holding  as 
it  did  many  friends  of  the  Americans,  might  become  an  easy  con 
quest. 

When  Montgomery  first  heard  of  Arnold's  appointment,  he  felt 
some  uneasiness,  in  anticipation  of  his  insisting  upon  an  inde 
pendent  leadership.  On  the  twenty-fourth  of  September  he  asked, 
in  a  letter  to  General  Schuyler,  "  Should  Arnold  come  in  my  neigh 
borhood,  has  he  orders  to  put  himself  under  my  command  ?"  "  You 
/mow  his  ambition"  he  continued ;  " and  I  need  not  point  out  the  bad 
consequences  of  a  separate  command."*  This  uneasiness  was  re- 

*  Autograph  Letter. 


^E'r.  43.]  CAPTURE  OF  MONTREAL.  699 

moved  by  a  letter  from  Schuyler,  written  on  the  thirtieth,  in  which 
he  said :  "  When  General  Washington  first  informed  me  that  a 
body  of  troops  was  to  be  sent  by  the  way  of  Kennebec,  I  foresaw 
the  necessity  of  being  explicit  on  the  subject  of  command.  And 
by  his  of  the  eighth  instant,  in  answer  to  mine,  he  says,  '  I  shall 
take  care  in  my  instructions  to  Colonel  Arnold,  that  in  case  there 
should  be  a  junction  of  the  detachment  with  your  army,  you  shall 
have  no  difficulty  in  adjusting  the  scale  of  command.'"*  In  the 
ninth  article  of  the  instructions  referred  to,  Washington,  it  will  be 
perceived,  was  very  explicit  on  that  point. 

Now,  when  about  to  penetrate  Canada,  Montgomery  was  eager 
to  form  a  junction  with  the  intrepid  leader  of  the  expedition 
across  the  wilderness,  but  no  tidings  came  of  his  arrival.  "  Not  a 
word  of  Arnold  yet,"  he  wrote  to  Schuyler.  "  I  have  sent  two 
expresses  to  him  lately,  one  by  an  Indian  who  promised  to  return 
with  expedition.  The  instant  I  have  news  of  him  I  will  acquaint 
you  by  express."  But  he  did  not  tarry  and  wait  upon  uncertain 
ties.  He  issued  orders  for  the  troops  to  march :  then  the  voice  of 
mutiny  was  again  heard.  The  cold  season  was  near  at  hand,  and 
the  raw  troops,  unused  to  the  privations  of  the  field,  yearned  for 
home,  and  at  first  refused  to  be  led  further  away.  But  the  kind 
temper,  patriotic  zeal,  and  winning  eloquence  of  Montgomery ;  and 
a  promise  that  when  Montreal  should  be  taken,  no  further  service 
would  be  asked  of  them,  won  them  to  obedience,  and  all  but  a  small 
garrison  left  at  St.  John,  pushed  on  toward  Montreal,  where  Gov 
ernor  Carleton  had  remained  since  his  repulse  at  Longueuil. 

When  Montgomery  approached  Montreal  on  the  twelfth  of  No 
vember,  Carleton,  knowing  the  extreme  weakness  of  the  place,  and 
the  little  dependence  to  be  placed  in  the  loyalty  of  the  French 
inhabitants,  retreated  with  the  garrison,  on  board  a  fleet  of  ten  or 
eleven  small  vessels  lying  in  the  river  in  front  of  the  town.  Per 
ceiving  this  movement,  Montgomery  despatched  Colonel  Easton, 
with  continental  troops,  cannon,  and  armed  gondolas,  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Sorel  to  intercept  these  vessels  in  their  passage  down  the 

*  Schuyler's  Letter  Books. 


700  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

St.  Lawrence;  and,  at  the  same  time  he  crossed  the  river  from 
Laprairie.  On  the  following  morning  he  entered  Montreal  in  tri 
umph.  He  treated  the  inhabitants  humanely,  and  thus  secured 
their  confidence  and  good  will.  There  he  found  a  large  supply  of 
woollen  goods,  with  which  he  set  about  clothing  a  portion  of  his 
wretchedly-clad  army,  and  soon  those  who  agreed  to  follow  him* 
further  were  speedily  prepared  for  the  rigors  of  a  Canadian  winter. 
Then,  for  the  first,  he  was  informed,  through  intercepted  letters,  of 
Arnold's  arrival  in  the  neighborhood  of  Quebec ;  and  a  day  or  two 
afterward,  young  Burr  appeared  at  headquarters.  "  I  find,"  wrote 
Montgomery,  "that  the  king's  friends  at  Quebec  are  exceedingly 
alarmed,  and  expect  to  be  besieged ;  which,  by  the  blessing  of  God 
they  shall  be,  if  the  severe  season  holds  off,  and  I  can  prevail  on 
the  troops  to  accompany  me."  In  the  same  letter  he  expressed 
great  uneasiness  because  of  the  manifest  indisposition  of  the  troops 
to  follow  him  further.  "  I  make  no  doubt,"  he  said,  "  of  retaining 
as  many  as  will  hold  the  ground  already  gotten ;  but  it  is  of  the 
utmost  importance  to  finish  this  business  at  once,  that  the  ministry 
may  have  no  hopes  left  of  carrying  on  their  infernal  plan  in  this 
important  quarter,"* 

Easton  and  his  party  reached  the  Sorel  in  time  to  dispute  the 
passage  of  Carleton's  fleet.  They  were  so  advantageously  posted, 
with  six  cannon  on  shore,  and  two  row-galleys,  that  the  vessels 
could  not  pass,  and  for  several  days  they  were  kept  at  bay.  Mean 
while  Montgomeiy  prepared  to  attack  them  with  field-pieces  in 
batteaux,  but  before  he  could  complete  his  arrangements,  the  fleet 
was  captured  by  Easton.  General  Prescott  and  several  other  offi 
cers,  some  members  of  the  Canadian  council,  and  one  hundred  and 
twenty  private  soldiers,  with  all  the  vessels  and  stores,  were  sur 
rendered  by  capitulation.  But  Carleton,  whom  the  Americans 
were  specially  anxious  to  secure,  had,  under  cover  of  the  darkness 
on  the  previous  night,  escaped  in  a  boat  rowed  by  muffled  oars, 
and  reached  Quebec  in  safety.  The  spoils  were  quite  a  large  quan 
tity  of  provisions,  three  barrels  of  powder,  four  cannon  and  artil- 

*  Autograph  Letter,  Montreal,  November  13,  1775. 


MT.  43.]  ARNOLD  BEFORE  QUEBEC.  701 

lery  munitions,  a  quantity  of  small  arms,  balls,  musket-cartridges, 
two  hundred  pairs  of  shoes,  and  some  entrenching  tools.  The 
prisoners  and  booty  were  sent  to  St.  John,  and  Montgomery,  saying, 
"Until  Quebec  is  taken  Canada  is  unconquered,"  determined  to 
push  on  toward  that  capital  to  join  Arnold  in  besieging  it,  despite 
the  increasing  inclemency  of  the  season,  and  the  bad  conduct  of 
many  of  his  troops. 

Arnold,  meanwhile,  had  been  very  active  and  daring.  He  had 
resolved  to  cross  the  river  immediately  after  his  arrival  at  Point 
Levi,  on  the  ninth,  and  demand  the  surrender  of  Quebec.  He 
had  many  personal  and  political  friends  in  the  city,  and  at  once 
found  means  to  communicate  his  intentions  to  them,  that  they 
might  co-operate  with  him.  But  the  storm  that  commenced  on  his 
arrival  increased  in  violence,  and  for  several  days  and  nights  a 
tempest  of  wind  and  sleet  raged  upon  the  St.  Lawrence. 

In  the  meantime,  the  troops  under  the  veteran,  Maclean,  who  had 
fled  from  the  mouth  of  the  Sorel,  joined  the  garrison  at  Quebec, 
and  Arnold's  chances  for  success  were  diminished.  But  he  was  not 
discouraged,  and  when  the  wind  ceased,  on  the  evening  of  the 
thirteenth,  he  embarked  the  first  division  of  his  little  army  in  thirty 
or  forty  birch  canoes  that  he  had  procured,  and  crossed  the  river  a 
little  above  the  town,  unobserved  by  the  British  vessels.  Before 
daylight  five  hundred  resolute  Americans,  with  their  Indian  allies, 
had  safely  landed  and  were  gathered  at  Wolfe's  cove,  prepared  to 
emulate  the  heroism  of  the  English  army,  sixteen  years  before,  by 
scaling  the  heights  of  Abraham,  to  confront  the  enemy  in  the  city. 
One  hundred  and  fifty  Americans  were  yet  at  Point  Levi.  It  was 
too  late  to  return  for  them.  No  time  could  be  lost  without  danger 
to  the  enterprise,  for  the  garrison  would  soon  be  alarmed,  and  the 
Plains  of  Abraham  must  be  reached  before  the  enemy  should  sally 
forth.  This  was  accomplished  at  the  first  gleam  of  daylight,  Ar 
nold  led  his  men  up  Wolfe's  ravine ;  and  in  the  gray  of  early  morn 
ing,  that  intrepid  band  stood  upon  the  heights  of  Abraham,  exposed 
to  keen  blasts  from  the  north,  yet  filled  with  fiery  zeal  for  the  cause 
in  which  they  were  engaged.  They  were  soon  joined  by  their 


702  WASHINGTON:    A   BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

comrades  from  Point  Levi ;  and  then  was  presented  the  strange 
spectacle  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty  men,  without  artillery,  with 
almost  half  their  muskets  rendered  useless,  during  their  march 
through  the  wilderness,  in  the  heart  of  an  enemy's  country,  stand 
ing  as  besiegers  before  a  walled  and  fortified  town !  To  the  super 
ficial  observer  this  would  appear  like  the  desperate  movement  of 
madmen.  It  was  not  so. 

The  garrison  at  Quebec,  including  the  regular  troops,  militia,  and 
marines,  w\is  about  eighteen  hundred  strong;  quite  sufficient  to 
scatter  the  invaders  to  the  winds,  had  they  all  been  loyal  to  the 
crown.  They  were  not.  Most  of  the  leading  men  in  Quebec,  and 
in  the  surrounding  country  were  disloyally  inclined ;  and  the 
English  residents  were  dissatisfied  with  the  operations  of  laws  that 
had  grown  out  of  the  Quebec  Act  of  the  previous  year.  The 
French  citizens  and  the  hdbitans  beyond  the  walls,  though  petted, 
so  as  to  be  won  to  a  temporary  loyalty,  could  not  forget  their 
ancient  national  animosities,  and  were  willing  to  see  the  English 
discomfited.  The  unruly  conduct  of  the  soldiers  had  disgusted  the 
people,  and  some  were  loud  in  their  complaints  against  Carleton 
and  his  lieutenant,  for  exposing  Quebec,  by  withdrawing  the  garri 
son  when  Montreal  was  threatened.  The  militia,  who  formed  the 
greater  portion  of  the  garrison,  sympathized  with  the  people,  and 
were  suspected  of  treasonable  proclivities;  and  the  Scotch-High 
landers,  under  Maclean,  were  really  all  that  could  be  relied  on  by 
Cramahe.  These  elements  of  weakness,  well  known  to  Arnold, 
made  him  so  bold. 

Relying  upon  the  friendly  disposition  of  the  Canadians,  Arnold 
drew  up  his  men  within  eight  hundred  yards  of  the  walls,  near  the 
gate  of  St.  Louis,  and  ordered  them  to  give  three  cheers,  hoping 
that  the  regulars  would  sally  out  and  attack  him.  In  that  event, 
while  the  gates  were  unclosed,  he  intended  to  rush  through,  and  by 
the  aid  of  friends  within,  secure  the  town.  Hundreds  of  the  inhab 
itants  were  upon  the  walls,  and  many  of  them  huzzaed  in  return ; 
but  the  wary  Maclean,  conscious  of  the  disloyalty  that  surrounded 
him,  kept  the  garrison  within  their  secure  retreat,  quite  willing  to 


J£T.  43.]  ARNOLD  RETIRES  FROM  QUEBEC.  703 

leave  the  bleak  winter  winds  to  war  upon  the  invaders.  He 
brought  a  thirty-two-pound  cannon  to  bear  upon  the  Americans, 
but  not  a  shot  took  effect. 

Failing  in  his  attempts  to  draw  out  the  garrison  by  frequent 
hostile  displays  upon  the  heights,  Arnold,  in  accordance  with  the 
grave  forms  of  military  usage,  performed  the  ridiculous  farce  of 
sending  in  a  flag  to  Maclean,  with  a  formal  summons  to  surrender, 
and  threatening  him  with  woful  disasters  if  he  refused.  This  ex 
cited  the  regret  of  his  own  officers,  and  the  great  merriment  of 
the  loyalists  in  the  city.  Of  course  no  attention  was  paid  to  the 
summons;  and  Arnold  was  speedily  induced  to  retire  from  before 
Quebec.  On  the  morning  of  the  eighteenth,  he  made  a  thorough  in 
spection  of  his  ammunition  and  stores,  and  to  his  great  surprise,  he 
found  that  nearly  all  the  cartridges  were  spoiled,  hardly  five  rounds 
to  each  man  being  left  fit  for  use.  Many  of  his  troops  had  become 
sick  from  exposure  and  fatigue,  and  not  more  than  five  hundred 
and  fifty  men  were  fit  for  effective  service.  At  the  same  time,  he 
was  informed  that  Carleton  was  approaching  Quebec,  and  that 
Colonel  Maclean  was  preparing  to  make  a  sortie  in  the  course  of  a 
day  or  two.  This  combination  of  alarming  circumstances  caused 
him  to  break  up  his  camp  on  the  nineteenth,  and  retreat  to  Point 
aux  Trembles,  twenty  miles  above  Quebec,  there  to  await  the 
approaching  troops  under  Montgomery. 

Carleton  had  left  Point  aux  Trembles  but  a  few  hours  before 
Arnold's  arrival  there ;  and  shortly  afterward  the  Americans  heard 
the  cannonading  at  Quebec  that  welcomed  the  arrival  of  the  gov 
ernor.  On  the  following  day,  Arnold  despatched  a  message  to 
Montgomery,  by  Captain  Ogden,  informing  him  of  the  situation  of 
affairs  at  Quebec,  and  suggesting  the  necessity  of  employing  at 
least  two  thousand  men  in  the  siege. 

Having  placed  sufficient  garrisons  at  St.  John,  Chamblee,  and 
Montreal,  Montgomery  summoned  the  remainder  of  his  troops  to 
join  him  in  an  expedition  against  Quebec.  To  his  great  mortifica 
tion,  he  found  a  large  proportion  of  them  indisposed  to  comply. 
Some  absolutely  refused  to  go  further,  and  became  turbulent  and 


704  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

mutinous.  Others  pleaded  sickness;  the  term  of  enlistment  of 
many  had  expired,  and  they  insisted  upon  returning  home ;  and 
others,  insufficiently  clad,  made  that  circumstance  an  excuse  for 
their  refusal.  Days,  precious  days,  were  consumed  in  futile  en 
deavors  to  organize  a  force  sufficient  to  move  forward ;  and  in 
several  of  his  letters  to  General  Schuyler,  Montgomery  expressed 
his  mortification  because  of  their  being  still  dated  at  Montreal. 
Vexations  of  every  kind  harassed  and  wearied  him.  He  also  felt 
the  great  responsibility  resting  upon  him,  and  he  yearned  for  a 
committee  of  the  continental  Congress  to  be  with  him  as  an  ad 
visory  council,  and  to  exert  their  influence  upon  the  people  of 
Canada. 

Nothing  but  his  patriotic  desire  to  carry  out  the  plans  of  the 
campaign,  kept  Montgomery  at  the  head  of  the  turbulent  and 
unreliable  army  for  an  hour.  He  longed  for  General  Schuyler  to 
come  to  his  relief.  "  Will  not  your  health  permit  you  to  reside  at 
Montreal  this  winter  ?"  he  wrote  to  his  general  on  the  day  of  the 
capitulation.  "  I  must  go  home  if  I  walk  by  the  side  of  the  lake. 
I  am  weary  of  power,  and  totally  want  that  patience  and  temper 
so  requisite  for  such  a  command."  He  complained  of  the  coarse 
ness  and  want  of  cultivation  of  many  of  the  inferior  officers,  and 
attributed  much  of  the  insubordination  of  the  troops,  to  this  fact. 
"I  wish,"  he  wrote,  in  the  same  letter,  "some  method  could  be 
fallen  upon  of  engaging  gentlemen  to  serve.  A  point  *of  honor,  and 
more  knowledge  of  the  world  to  be  found  in  that  class  of  men, 
would  greatly  reform  discipline  and  render  the  troops  much  more 
tractable."*  To  this  letter  Schuyler  made  a  soothing  reply,  and 
added  a  postscript,  saying,  "  It  is  high  time  for  me  to  quit  this  place, 
as  I  am  lately  far  from  being  so  well  as  I  have  been."  His  disor 
ders  were  complicated,  and  not  long  afterward  he  was  compelled  to 
retire  to  his  home  in  Albany. 

Montgomer}7  was  yet  at  Montreal  on  the  twenty-fourth  of  No 
vember,  unable  to  move  forward,  and  greatly  irritated  by  an  event 
that  caused  him  to  resign.  Some  of  his  officers,  among  whom  was 

*  Autograph  Letter. 


JET.  43.]  THE  NEW  ENGLAND  TROOPS.  705 

Captain  Lamb,  of  the  artillery,  had  presumed  to  remonstrate  with 
him  because  of  his  humanity  to  the  British  prisoners.  "  Such  an 
insult,"  he  wrote,  "I  could  not  bear,  and  immediately  resigned. 
However,  to-day  they  qualified  by  such  an  apology,  as  put  it  in  my 
power  to  resume  the  command  with  some  propriety,  and  I  have 
promised  to  bury  it  in  oblivion." 

Already  many  of  the  soldiers  had  left  Montgomery,  and  made 
their  way  up  the  lake.  "  I  believe  you  have  few  of  the  New  Eng 
land  troops  left,"  wrote  General  Schuyler  to  him  on  the  eighteenth, 
from  Ticonderoga,  "  as  near  three  hundred  have  passed  here  within 
these  few  days,  and  so  very  impatient  to  get  home  that  many  have 
gone  from  here  by  land."*  To  General  Washington  he  wrote,  on 
the  twenty-second:  "Nothing  can  surpass  the  impatience  of  the 
troops  from  the  New  England  colonies  to  get  to  their  firesides. 
Near  three  hundred  of  them  arrived  a  few  days  ago,  unable  to  do 
any  duty,  but  as  soon  as  I  administered  that  grand  specific,  a  dis 
charge,  they  instantly  acquired  health,  and  rather  than  be  detained 
a  few  days  to  cross  Lake  George,  they  undertook  a  march  from 
here,  of  two  hundred  miles,  with  the  greatest  alacrity."f  At  about 
the  same  time,  Montgomery  wrote,  in  a  letter  to  Schuyler,  from 
Montreal :  "  The  rascally  Green-Mountain  Boys  have  left  me  in  the 
lurch,  after  promising  to  go." 

Washington  experienced  similar  trouble  with  some  of  the  Con 
necticut  troops  at  Cambridge.  He  communicated  the  facts  to 
Governor  Trumbull,  who  replied :  "  The  late  extraordinary  and 

*  Schuyler's  Letter  Books. 

t  Schuyler's  Letter  Books.  At  this  time  a  circumstance  occurred  at  Ticonderoga,  which 
caused  much  ill  feeling  toward  General  Schuyler,  among  some  of  the  Connecticut  troops, 
who  were  then  at  that  post.  A  schooner  and  row-galley  arrived  at  Crown  Point  with  more 
than  one  hundred  persons,  many  of  them  prisoners,  and  women  and  children,  from  Canada.  The 
ice  prevented  them  from  reaching  Ticonderoga,  and  at  Crown  Point  they  became  destitute  of  pro 
visions.  In  this  perilous  situation  they  sent  an  express  to  General  Schuyler,  imploring  relief.  He 
immediately  ordered  three  captains  of  Wooster's  regiment  to  proceed  with  a  considerable  body  of 
men,  in  batteaux,  to  attempt  the  relief  of  the  sufferers.  They  manifested  great  unwillingness  to 
go,  and  made  many  frivolous  excuses.  This  display  of  inhumanity  disgusted  and  irritated  the 
benevolent  and  high-minded  Schuyler,  and  the  next  day  (the  twenty-fifth  of  November),  in  general 
orders,  he  named  the  three  captains  (Porter,  Arnold,  and  Peck),  and  said  :  "  The  general,  therefore, 
not  daring  to  trust  a  matter  of  so  much  importance  to  men  of  so  little  feeling,  has  ordered  Lieu 
tenant  Riker,  of  Colonel  Holmes's  regiment,  to  make  the  attempt.  He  received  the  order  with  the 
alacrity  becoming  a  gentleman,  an  officer,  and  a  Christian." — Schuyler's  Orderly  Book.  This  was 
a  severe  but  merited  rebuke,  and  caused  much  irritation. 

45 


70(J  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

reprehensible  conduct  of  some  of  the  troops  of  this  colony  impres 
ses  me,  and  the  minds  of  many  of  our  people,  with  grief,  surprise, 
and  indignation ;  since  the  treatment  they  met  with,  and  the  order 
and  request  made  to  them,  were  so  reasonable,  and  apparently 
necessary  for  the  defence  of  the  common  cause,  and  safety  of  our 
rights  and  privileges,  for  which  they  freely  engaged." 

Sick  and  feeble  as  he  was,  General  Schuyler  had  nobly  seconded 
Montgomery  in  all  his  efforts ;  and  his  services  at  Ticonderoga,  in 
forwarding  supplies,  and  as  a  vigilant  medium  of  communication 
between  the  army  in  Canada,  and  the  continental  Congress  and 
Washington,  were  of  the  greatest  importance.  He  and  Mont 
gomery  were  high-minded  and  patriotic.  They  were  skilful  tacti 
cians,  careful  guardians  of  the  public  welfare,  economical  in  their 
management,  and  exact  disciplinarians.  Therefore  the  disorderly 
spirit  manifested  by  the  troops,  the  peculations  of  commissaries 
and  others  in  offices  of  trust,  wastefulness  in  every  department,  and 
the  selfishness  and  sectional  jealousy  that  continually  appeared, 
vexed  and  annoyed  them  every  hour ;  and  they  became  so  heartily 
weary  of  the  service,  that  they  expressed  a  determination  to  retire 
to  private  life  at  the  close  of  the  campaign.  u  Gentlemen  in  com 
mand,"  Schuyler  wrote  to  Washington,  in  the  letter  above  quoted 
from,  "  find  it  very  disagreeable  to  coax,  to  wheedle,  and  even  to  He, 
to  carry  on  the  service.  Habituated  to  order,  I  can  not,  without 
the  most  extreme  pain,  see  that  disregard  of  discipline,  confusion, 
and  inattention,  which  reigns  so  generally  in  this  quarter,  and  I  am, 
therefore,  determined  to  retire.  Of  this  resolution  I  have  advised 
Congress."* 

The  value  of  these  officers  was  well  understood  by  Congress,  and 
by  the  command er-in-chief.  The  former  entreated  General  Schuy 
ler  not  to  retire,  because  it  "  would  deprive  America  of  the  benefits 
of  his  zeal  and  abilities,  and  rob  him  of  the  honor  of  completing 
the  work  he  had  so  happily  begun  f  and  they  honored  Montgomery 
with  a  major-general's  commission.  Washington  was  much  con 
cerned,  for  he  regarded  General  Schuyler  as  one  of  the  main 

*  Schuyler's  Letter  Books 


ZEr.  43.]  PATRIOTIC  SENTIMENTS  EXCHANGED.  707 

supports  of  the  continental  army,  and,  on  the  fifth  of  December, 
he  wrote  to  him  and  said :  "  I  know  that  your  complaints  are  too 
well  founded ;  but  I  would  willingly  hope  that  nothing  will  induce 
you  to  quit  the  service,  and  that,  in  time,  order  and  subordination 
will  take  the  place  of  confusion,  and  command  be  rendered  more 
agreeable —  The  cause  we  are  engaged  in  is  so  just  and  righteous, 
that  we  must  try  to  rise  superior  to  every  obstacle  in  its  support ; 
and,  therefore,  I  beg  that  you  will  not  think  of  resigning,  unless 
you  have  carried  your  application  to  Congress  too  far  to  recede." 

A  fortnight  later  Washington  wrote  to  General  Schuyler  and 
said:  "Let  me  ask  you,  sir,  when  is  the  time  for  brave  men  to 
exert  themselves  in  the  cause  of  liberty  and  their  country,  if  this 
is  not?  Should  any  difficulties  that  they  have  to  encounter  at  this 
important  crisis  deter  them?  God  knows  there  is  not  a  difficulty 
that  you  both  very  justly  complain  of,  which  I  have  not,  in  an  emi 
nent  degree,  experienced,  that  I  am  not  every  day  experiencing; 
but  we  must  bear  up  against  them,  and  make  the  best  of  mankind 
as  they  are,  since  we  can  not  have  them  as  we  wish.  Let  me, 
therefore,  conjure  you  and  Mr.  Montgomery  to  lay  aside  such 
thoughts — thoughts  injurious  to  yourselves,  and  extremely  so  to 
your  country,  which  calls  aloud  for  gentlemen  of  your  abilities."* 

This  appeal  was  more  than  sufficient.  On  the  fifth  of  January, 
Schuyler  replied :  "I  do  not  hesitate  a  moment  to  answer  my  dear 
general's  question  in  the  affirmative,  by  declaring,  that  now  or 
never  is  the  time  for  every  virtuous  American  to  exert  himself  in 
the  cause  of  liberty  and  his  country,  and  that  it  becomes  a  dut}^ 
cheerfully  to  sacrifice  the  sweets  of  domestic  felicity,  to  attain  the 
honest  and  glorious  end  America  has  in  view ;  and  I  can,  with  a 
good  conscience,  declare,  that  I  have  devoted  myself  to  the  service 
of  my  country,  in  the  firmest  resolution  to  sink  or  swim  with  it." 
Then,  anticipating  the  question,  "  Why,  then,  do  you  wish  to  retire 
from  public  office  ?"  General  Schuyler  unburdened  his  full  heart 
in  the  confidence  of  brother  with  brother,  and  said :  "  I  have 
already  informed  you  of  the  disagreeable  situation  I  have  been  in 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writings  of  Washington,  iii.,  209. 


708  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

during  the  campaign,  but  I  would  waive  that  were  it  not  that  it 
has  chiefly  arisen  from  prejudice  and  jealousy,  for  I  could  point  out 
particular  persons  of  rank  in  the  army,  who  have  frequently  de 
clared  that  the  general  commanding  in  this  quarter  ought  to  be  of 
the  colony  whence  the  majority  of  the  troops  come.  But  it  is  not 
from  the  opinion  or  principles  of  individuals  that  I  have  drawn  the 
following  conclusion :  that  troops  from  the  cotony  of  Connecticut  will  not 
hear  uith  a  general  from  another  colon?/.  It  is  from  the  daily  and  com 
mon  conversation  of  all  ranks  of  people  from  that  colony,  both  in 
and  out  of  the  army ;  and  I  assure  you,  that  I  sincerely  lament 
that  a  people  of  so  much  public  virtue  should  be  actuated  by  such 
an  unbecoming  jealousy,  founded  on  such  a  narrow  principle  —  a 
principle  extremely  unfriendly  to  our  righteous  cause."* 

This  sectional  jealousy  which  has  ever  been  the  bane  of  perfect 
union  in  our  republic,  was  the  chief  cause  of  many  serious  diffi 
culties  during  the  earlier  years  of  the  war,  and  at  times,  threatened 
the  utter  defeat  of  many  well-planned  measures  of  the  revolted 
colonists.  All  of  the  leading  men  in  the  army  were  subjected  to  its 
baneful  effects,  and  none  more  frequently  and  pressingly  than 
Washington  and  Schuyler.  The  correspondence  of  these  great  and 
pure  men  abounds  with  evidences  of  such  annoyance,  and  unfolds  to 
the  student  of  the  history  of  that  period,  much  of  the  true  philoso 
phy  by  which  events,  to  be  understood,  must  be  examined,  analyzed, 
and  explained.  And  this  brief  digression  has  been  made. for  the 
purpose  of  giving  the  reader  a  clue  to  otherwise  inexplicable  cir 
cumstances  which  we  shall  hereafter  consider.  We  will  now  re 
sume  the  narrative. 

With  the  remnant  of  his  army,  that  had  been  thoroughly  win 
nowed  of  the  m  turbulent  and  mutinous,  Montgomery  sailed  from 
Montreal  at  the  close  of  November,  on  board  the  flotilla  captured 
by  Easton,  leaving  General  Wooster  in  the  chief  command  of  the 
posts  that  were  behind  him.  On  the  first  of  December  he  joined 
Arnold,  at  Point  aux  Trembles,  and  took  the  command  of  the 
combined  forces,  amounting,  in  all,  to  about  nine  hundred  men 

*  ISchuvler's  Letter  Books 


JET.  43.]  MONTGOMERY  BEFORE  QUEBEC.  709 

only.  Those  with  Montgomery  were  chiefly  New-Yorkers,  inclu 
ding  Lamb's  artillery.  He  was  able  to  supply  Arnold's  half-naked 
troops  with  clothing ;  and,  on  the  day  after  the  junction,  they  all 
started,  on  foot,  for  Quebec,  in  the  face  of  a  driving  snow-storm. 
Their  march  was  slow  and  extremely  fatiguing,  for  the  roads  soon 
became  filled  with  deep  drifts,  through  which  they  were  compelled 
to  drag  the  artillery.  But  they  overcame  every  obstacle,  and  on 
the  morning  of  the  fifth,  the  little  army  beheld  Quebec.  Before 
night  they  were  all  comfortably  quartered  in  houses,  in  the  suburb 
St.  Roque,  near  the  Intendant's  palace,  close  by  the  St.  Charles. 
Montgomery  made  his  headquarters  at  Holland  house,  on  the  road 
leading  to  the  church  of  St.  Foi,  and  Arnold  occupied  a  dwelling 
near  Scott's  bridge,  that  spanned  the  St.  Charles. 

Montgomery  at  once  made  diligent  inquiries  respecting  the  forti 
fications  of  the  town,  the  strength  and  character  of  the  garrison, 
the  disposition  of  the  inhabitants,  and  the  means  for  supplying  the 
wants  of  his  army.  The  information  obtained  convinced  him,  that 
with  his  handful  of  men,  an  investment  of  the  city  was  out  of  the 
question.  He,  therefore,  contemplated  and  adopted  other  plans. 


710  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTEE   LX. 

WASHINGTON     AND     THE     CANADA     EXPEDITIONS SCHUYLER's      ILLNESS MONT 
GOMERY     AND    WOOSTER WOOSTER'S     NOBLE     CONDUCT BRITISH     SQUADRON 

SAILS    FROM    BOSTON CANADIANS    TO    BE    CONCILIATED WASHINGTON'S  ANTI 
CIPATIONS  OF  SUCCESS  IN  CANADA THE    SIEGE  OF  QUEBEC EFFORTS   AND 

PLANS AN  ASSAULT  ON  THE  CITY DEATH  OF   MONTGOMERY BRAVERY  OF 

ARNOLD'S  TROOPS  —  AMERICANS  DEFEATED — HONORS  TO  GENERAL  MONTGOM 
ERY RELATIVE  POSITION  OF  THE  BELLIGERENTS. 

FROM  his  camp  at  Cambridge,  where  he  was  compelled  by  cir 
cumstances  to  be  comparatively  inactive,  Washington  had  watched 
the  movements  of  these  two  expeditions  into  Canada  with  the  live 
liest  interest  and  anxiety,  especially  after  Arnold  left  the  Kennebec. 
In  view  of  his  departure,  the  commander-in-chief  called  upon  Gov 
ernor  Trumbull  to  send  on  reinforcements  to  supply  the  place  of 
Arnold's  detachment;  and  he  directed  General  Wooster,  then  with 
a  small  force  of  Connecticut  troops  on  Long  Island,  to  join  General 
Schuyler  on  Lake  Champlain,  saying  in  his  letter,  that  that  officer 
was  "  engaged  in  a  service  of  the  greatest  importance  to  the  whole 
continent,  his  strength  and  appointments  being  far  short  of  his 
expectations."  Wooster  obeyed,  and  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  Sep 
tember  he  embarked,  with  his  battalion,  for  Albany. 

A  month  later  the  illness  of  General  Schuyler  gave  Washington 
some  apprehensions  respecting  the  command  of  the  troops  in  the 
northern  department.  As  Wooster  was  the  eldest  brigadier,  Wash 
ington  thought  he  would  take  rank  and  command  of  Montgomery, 
and  this  he  deprecated.  Wooster  was  an  old  man,  and  lacked  the 
necessary  activity  to  conduct  and  push  through  a  campaign  like 
the  one  in  progress.  Washington  expressed  his  apprehensions  on 
that  point  to  General  Schuyler,  and  said:  "I  am,  therefore,  much 


Mr.  43.]  MONTGOMERY  AND  WOOSTER.  711 

alarmed  for  Arnold,  whose  expedition  was  built  upon  yours,  and 
who  will  infallibly  perish,  if  the  invasion  and  entry  into  Canada  are 
abandoned  by  your  successors."  Fortunately,  by  the  appointment 
of  Putnam  over  Wooster,  and  other  changes,  the  former  ranked 
one  degree  lower  than  Montgomery;  and  to  prevent  all  chances 
for  disputes,  Schuyler  had  resolved  to  keep  Wooster  at  Ticonderoga 
and  send  his  regiment  forward. 

Wooster  had  complained  of  the  appointment  of  Putnam  over 
him,  and  his  inferior  position  on  the  list  of  generals ;  and  his  officers 
and  men,  considering  that  he  had  been  unjustly  dealt  with,  sympa 
thized  with  him  in  his  complaints,  and  refused  to  proceed  without 
him.*  This  embarrassed  Schuyler,  and  he  wrote  to  Wooster  to 
know  on  what  ground  he  considered  himself  to  stand.  Wooster 
made  a  noble  and  patriotic  reply,  in  which  he  said :  "  I  shall  consider 
my  rank  in  the  army  what  my  commission  from  the  continental 
Congress  makes  it,  and  shall  not  attempt  to  dispute  the  command 
with  General  Montgomery  at  St.  John.  You  may  depend,  sir,  that 
I  shall  exert  myself  as  much  as  possible  to  promote  the  strictest 
union  and  harmony  among  both  officers  and  soldiers,  and  use  every 
means  in  my  power  to  give  success  to  the  expedition."f  This  deter 
mination  was  communicated  to  Washington,  and  gave  him  great 
satisfaction.  "  I  much  approve  your  conduct  in  regard  to  Wooster," 
he  wrote.  "  My  fears  are  at  an  end,  as  he  acts  in  a  subordinate 
character.  Intimate  this  to  General  Montgomery,  with  my  con 
gratulations  on  his  success,  and  the  seasonable  supply  of  powder 
[taken  at  Chamblee],  and  wishes  that  his  next  letter  may  be  dated 
from  Montreal."  At  the  same  time,  Washington  expressed  his 
great  anxiety  to  hear  from  Arnold. 

Early  in  October  Washington  was  informed  that  a  small  British 
squadron,  bearing  six  hundred  men,  had  left  Boston  and  sailed 
northeastward.  It  was  at  first  supposed  that  its  destination  was 
the  destruction  of  New  England  coast  towns,  as  the  ships  bore  mor- 

*  The  officers  and  men  under  Wooster  had  already  refused  to  sign  the  articles  of  war  sent  out  by 
the  continental  Congress,  and  would  only  be  governed  by  the  militia  laws  of  Connecticut. — Auto 
graph  Letter  of  Wooster  to  Schuyler. 

t  Autograph  Letter 


712  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

tars  and  howitzers ;  but  finally,  it  became  apparent  that  Quebec  was 
the  point  for  which  the  squadron  had  sailed.  This  conclusion  gave 
Washington  uneasiness,  for  such  a  reinforcement  of  the  garrison  at 
Quebec  before  the  arrival  of  Montgomery  and  Arnold,  might  be 
fatal  to  the  whole  scheme  against  Canada.  He,  therefore,  waited 
anxiously  for  letters  from  Arnold,  but  these  were  much  delayed 
after  the  expedition  left  Lake  Megantic,  because  they  were  sent 
by  way  of  Montreal,  St.  John,  and  Ticonderoga. 

At  length  encouraging  intelligence  came  from  both  Montgomery 
and  Arnold ;  and,  on  the  nineteenth  of  November,  Washington 
expressed,  in  a  letter  to  Congress,  anticipations  of  precisely  what 
did  occur.  "  It  is  likely,"  he  said,  "  that  Governor  Carleton  will, 
with  what  force  he  can  collect,  after  the  surrender  of  the  rest  of 
Canada,  throw  himself  into  Quebec,  and  there  make  his  last  effort." 
On  the  twenty-seventh  he  wrote  joyfully  to  Richard  Henry  Lee, 
and  said:  "I  heartily  congratulate  you  and  the  Congress  on  the 
reduction  of  St.  John.  I  hope  all  Canada  is  in  our  possession 
before  this.  Would  it  not  be  politic  to  invite  them  [Canadians]  to 
send  members  to  Congress  ?  Would  it  not  be  also  politic  to  raise  a 
regiment  or  two  in  Canada,  and  bring  them  out  of  the  country  ?" 

These  measures  had  already  been  provided  for  by  Congress,  in 
their  instructions  to  a  committee,  appointed  by  that  body  to  pro 
ceed  to  the  northern  department  and  confer  with  General  Schuyler. 
And  both  Washington  and  Congress  had  been  anticipated  by  Mont 
gomery,  who,  on  the  day  when  he  entered  Montreal  as  victor,  said 
to  the  people :  "  I  hope  to  see  such  a  provincial  convention  assem 
bled  as  would  enter  with  zeal  into  every  measure  that  could  con 
tribute  to  set  the  civil  and  religious  rights  of  this  and  its  sister 
colonies  on  a  permanent  foundation."  In  this,  Montgomery  was 
ably  seconded  by  Mr.  Price,  a  merchant  of  Montreal,  who  was 
very  active  in  affording  substantial  aid  to  the  troops ;  and,  in  the 
spring,  that  gentleman  was  appointed  deputy  commissary-general 
of  the  army  in  Canada. 

Early  in  December,  while  everything  wore  a  gloomy  aspect  at 
Cambridge,  Washington  was  still  cheered  by  intelligence  from 


WASHINGTON'S  FEARS  AND  HOPES.  713 

Montgomery  and  Arnold,  the  former  having  taken  Montreal,  and 
the  latter  then  menacing  Quebec.  The  same  intelligence  from  the 
North  that  pleased  Washington,  alarmed  General  Howe,  at  Boston. 
On  hearing  of  the  fall  of  St.  John  and  Montreal,  he  wrote  to  Lord 
Dartmouth,  and.  expressed  his  apprehensions  that  the  whole  prov 
ince  would  speedily  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  invaders;  and  he 
recommended  the  fitting  out  of  twelve  thousand  men  for  the  re 
covery  of  it. 

On  the  fifth  of  December,  the  day  when  the  combined  forces  of 
Montgomery  and  Arnold  reached  Quebec,  Washington  wrote  to 
Schuyler  and  said :  "  It  gave  me  the  highest  satisfaction  to  hear  of 
Colonel  Arnold's  being  at  Point  Levi,  with  his  men  in  great  spirits, 
after  their  long  and  fatiguing  march....  The  merit  of  this  gentle 
man  is  certainly  great,  and  I  heartily  wish  that  fortune  may  distin 
guish  him  as  one  of  her  favorites.  I  am  convinced  that  he  will  do 
everything  that  prudence  and  valor  shall  suggest,  to  add  to  the 
success  of  our  arms,  and  for  reducing  Quebec  to  our  possession." 

To  Colonel  Arnold  he  wrote  on  the  same  day :  "  It  is  not  in  the 
power  of  any  man  to  command  success,  but  you  have  done  more, 
you  have  deserved  it ;  and  before  this  time,  I  hope,  you  will  have 
met  with  the  laurels  which  are  due  to  your  toils,  in  the  possession 
of  Quebec.  My  thanks  are  due,  and  sincerely  offered  to  you,  for 

your  enterprising  and  persevering  spirit I  have  no  doubt  but  a 

junction  of  your  detachment  with  the  army  under  General  Mont 
gomery  is  effected  before  this.  If  so,  you  will  put  yourself  under 
his  command,  and  will,  I  am  persuaded,  give  him  all  the  assistance 
in  your  power  to  finish  the  glorious  work  you  have  begun.  That 
the  Almighty  may  preserve  and  prosper  you,  is  my  sincere  and 
fervent  prayer." 

Finally,  on  the  last  day  of  the  year — the  day  when  the  Ameri 
cans  stormed  Quebec,  when  all  was  gloom  at  Cambridge  because 
of  the  uncertainty  respecting  a  new  organization  of  the  army  that 
was  to  take  place  the  following  day,  Washington  received  cheering 
news  from  the  North,  brought  by  Captain  Freeman,  who  came 
directly  from  the  camp  before  Quebec.  He  represented  the  Ameri- 


714  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

cans  as  about  two  thousand  strong,  while  Carletori  had  only  about 
twelve  hundred  men,  "  the  majority  of  these  sailors ;"  and  that  it 
was  his  opinion,  that  the  French  would  give  up  the  place  if  they 
could  get  the  same  conditions  that  were  granted  to  the  inhabitants 
of  Montreal.  This  was  pleasant  intelligence,  but  it  proved  decep 
tive.  Hope  told  a  flattering  tale.  Almost  the  next  news  from  the 
North  came  in  the  accents  of  a  voice  of  wail,  for  brave  men  had 
fallen,  and  Quebec  stood  firm  against  the  efforts  of  the  invaders. 

Governor  Carleton's  arrival  at  Quebec  was  opportune  for  the 
royal  cause  in  that  quarter,  and  Colonel  Maclean  and  other  loyalists 
hailed  him  with  pleasure.  Notwithstanding  his  personal  unpopu 
larity,  especially  with  the  merchants  and  other  business  men,  be 
cause  of  his  habitual  coldness  of  manner,  and  his  preference  for 
military  society,  in  this  hour  of  danger  they  felt  great  confidence 
in  his  skill,  judgment,  prudence,  and  courage.  Carle  ton  well  knew 
the  disloyalty  that  surrounded  him,  and  his  first  measure  was  to 
expel  from  the  city  all  persons  suspected  of  the  least  disaffection. 
Very  many  left ;  and  while  enemies  within,  who  were  more  to  be 
dreaded  than  enemies  without,  were  thus  deprived  of  power  to  do 
harm,  there  were  many  less  mouths  in  the  city  to  fill.  This  would 
have  been  a  consideration  of  great  importance,  if  a  competent  force 
had  protracted  the  siege,  and  cut  off  supplies  from  the  country. 

On  the  day  of  his  arrival  at  Quebec,  Montgomery  despatched  a 
flag  to  Carleton  with  a  formal  summons  to  surrender.  In  violation 
of  the  rules  of  honorable  warfare,  the  flag  was  fired  upon,  and  not 
permitted -to  approach  the  walls.  At  length  Montgomery  sent  in  a 
letter,  by  a  woman,  in  which  he  magnified  the  number  and  appoint 
ments  of  his  army,  demanded  an  immediate  surrender,  and  threat 
ened  the  city  with  the  calamities  of  assault  and  pillage  in  the 
event  of  Carleton's  refusal.  By  the  same  messenger  he  sent  let 
ters  to  leading  citizens,  promising  every  indulgence  in  the  event  of 
their  immediate  submission.  The  brave  governor  was  not  easily 
frightened,  notwithstanding  he  believed  the  Americans  to  be  much 
more  numerous  than  they  really  were.  He  well  knew  that  the 
presence  of  himself  and  the  troops  would  keep  the  friends  of  the 


JET.  43.]  AN  ICE-BATTERY.  715 

Americans  in  the  city,  on  whom  Montgomery  placed  great  reliance, 
very  quiet,  and,  therefore,  he  did  not  fear  the  operation  of  secret 
treason.  He  knew  the  strength  of  his  defences,  and  the  perils  of 
the  elements  to  which  the  invaders  were  exposed  outside  the  walls. 
Carefully  and  wisely  measuring  his  chances,  Carleton  calculated  on 
a  successful  resistance,  and  spurned  the  summons  of  Montgomery. 

The  prospect  for  the  Americans  appeared  extremely  unpromising. 
With  a  feeble,  ill-clad,  and  ill-fed  army,  exposed  to  the  severest 
frosts  in  the  open  fields ;  with  no  other  ordnance  than  a  field-train 
of  artillery  and  a  few  mortars ;  with  scanty  intrenching  tools,  and 
the  ground  hard  frozen  to  a  great  depth,  the  American  commander 
almost  despaired  of  success.  Yet  his  brave  heart  and  generous 
spirit  would  not  yield,  and  he  resolved  to  force  the  people  and 
garrison  into  a  surrender  by  annoyances.  Accordingly,  he  com 
menced  the  erection  of  a  breastwork  of  ice,  within  four  hundred 
yards  of  the  walls,  in  front  of  St.  Louis  gate,  by  arranging  gabions 
(large  cylindrical  baskets  of  wicker-work)  abreast,  filled  with  snow, 
upon  which  water  was  poured  until  the  whole  became  a  mass  of 
solid  ice.  This  was  a  severe  labor,  and  was  not  completed  until  the 
fifteenth,  when  Captain  Lamb  mounted  five  field-pieces  and  a  how 
itzer  upon  the  glittering  embankment,  and  opened  a  cannonade 
and  bombardment.  Several  mortars  were  also  placed  in  the  suburb 
St.  Roque ;  and  for  five  successive  days  and  nights  the  garrison  and 
citizens  were  terribly  harassed.  The  guns  were  too  light  to  make 
any  impression  upon  the  walls,  but  the  bombs  set  the  town  on  fire 
in  several  places.  At  length  heavy  balls  hurled  from  the  British 
fortress,  shivered  the  brittle  breastworks  of  the  Americans  into 
atoms,  and  the  ice-battery  was  withdrawn. 

Almost  three  weeks  had  been  consumed  in  ineffectual  attempts 
to  make  an  entrance  or  compel  a  surrender.  Mutinous  murmurs 
became  audible  in  the  camp ;  the  term  of  enlistment  of  many  of 
the  men  was  nearly  expired,  and  the  small-pox  appeared  among 
the  soldiers.  Something  effectual  must  be  done  speedily,  or  the 
army  would  dissolve  and  utter  failure  would  ensue.  Montgomery, 
perceiving  the  fearful  web  of  difficulties  that  was  gathering  around 


71H  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

him,  conceived  a  bold  plan.  Mr.  Price,  of  Montreal,  and  Mr.  Antill, 
of  the  same  place  (whom  Montgomery  appointed  engineer,  with 
the  rank  of  captain),  had  expressed  a  belief,  that  if  the  Americans 
could  obtain  possession  of  the  lower  town,  the  merchants  and  other 
wealthy  citizens  would  induce  Carleton  to  surrender,  rather  than 
expose  all  their  property  to  destruction.  A  council-of-war  was 
called,  and  the  general's  plan  (which  he  had  already  communicated 
to  Wooster,  at  Montreal,  by  letter  on  the  sixteenth)  was  laid  before 
it.  He  proposed  to  detach  one  third  of  the  troops,  on  the  first 
night  when  a  strong  northwest  wind  should  be  blowing,  to  set  fire 
to  houses  in  the  lower  town,  at  such  a  point  as  to  insure  a  com 
munication  of  the  flames  to  a  stockade  recently  erected,  on  a  rock 
overlooking  the  suburb  St.  Eoque,  and  in  the  confusion  to  force 
the  barrier,  rush  in,  and,  by  aid  of  the  friendly  inhabitants,  take 
possession.  At  the  same  time,  another  detachment  was  to  attempt 
the  bastion  at  Cape  Diamond  by  escalade. 

This  plan  was  approved  by  the  council,  but  its  execution  was 
delayed  by  dissensions  among  some  of  the  officers,  fomented  at  that 
time,  as  Montgomeiy  intimated  in  a  letter  to  Schuyler,  by  Major 
Brown,  who  had  quarrelled  with  Arnold  at  Ticonderoga,  and  nur 
tured  in  his  bosom  a  viperous  feud.*  Arnold  had  used  harsh  lan 
guage  toward  Captain  Ranch  ett  before  their  arrival  at  Point  Levi, 
on  account  of  alleged  misconduct  of  the  latter ;  and  two  other  cap 
tains  (Goodrich  and  Hubbard),  took  sides  with  Hanchet.  When 
Brown  heard  of  this,  after  the  junction  at  Point  aux  Trembles,  he 
seems  to  have  made  it  an  occasion  for  annoying  Arnold,  by  widen 
ing  the  breach,  and  endeavoring  to  seduce  the  three  malcontents 
from  their  leader's  command  to  his  own.  He  was  so  far  successful, 
that  when  Montgomery  gave  directions  for  carrying  out  his  plan, 
the  three  captains  and  their  companies  threatened  to  leave  the 
army  unless  they  were  detached  from  Arnold's  corps.  Montgomery 

*  In  this  letter,  dated  the  twenty-sixth  of  December,  Montgomery  mentioned  these  difficulties, 
and  said  :  "I  am  much  afraid  my  friend  Major  Brown  is  deeply  concerned  in  this  business.  I  will 
have  an  eclaircissement  with  him  on  the  subject.  I  will,  hereafter,  acquaint  you  more  particularly 
with  this  matter."  This  was  the  last  letter  General  Montgomery  ever  wrote  to  General  Schuyler, 
and  that  further  information  "  hereafter"  was  never  given. 


JEx.  43.]  PLAN  OF  ATTACK  ON  QUEBEC.  717 

refused  compliance  with  their  demand.  His  wisdom  and  firmness 
soon  restored  order,  and  he  waited  with  impatience  for  a  propitious 
moment  to  attempt  the  execution  of  his  scheme.  Everything  was 
properly  prepared  for  the  service.  A  forlorn  hope  of  forty  men 
were,  at  his  own  request,  placed  under  the  charge  of  young  Burr 
(who  was  now  Montgomery's  aid,  with  the  rank  of  captain),  ladders 
for  the  escalade  were  prepared,  and  Burr  thoroughly  drilled  the  men 
for  the  perilous  duty.  Every  night  that  young  subaltern  recon 
noitred  the  place  of  intended  attack,  and  made  himself  fully  ac 
quainted  with  every  foot  of  the  locality  and  its  surroundings. 

A  movement  of  the  garrison  convinced  Montgomery  that  his 
plans  had  been  revealed  to  Carleton  by  some  deserters,  who  had 
fled  from  his  camp  and  taken  refuge  in  the  city,  and  he  changed  it. 
Colonel  Livingston  was  to  make  a  feigned  attack  on  St.  Louis  gate, 
and  set  it  on  fire,  and  at  the  same  time  Brown  was  to  menace 
Cape  Diamond  bastion.  Arnold,  with  three  hundred  and  fifty  of 
his  hardy  followers,  and  forty  of  Lamb's  artillery  company,  was 
to  assail  the  works  in  the  suburb  St.  Roque,  while  Montgomery, 
with  the  remainder,  was  to  pass  below  Cape  Diamond  bastion,  carry 
the  defences  at  the  base  of  the  declivity,  endeavor  to  press  for 
ward  and  form  a  junction  with  Arnold.  Being  thus  in  possession 
of  the  lower  town,  the  combined  force  was  to  carry  Prescott  gate, 
at  the  lower  end  of  Mountain  street,  and  rush  into  the  city. 

At  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  the  thirty-first  of  December, 
the  little  army  took  the  respective  stations  preparatory  to  the 
attack.  The  New  York  regiment,  under  Lieutenant-Colonel  Camp 
bell,  and  a  part  of  Easton's  militia,  paraded  at  Holland  house,  when 
Montgomery  took  the  immediate  command  of  them.  Arnold's 
detachment  and  Lamb's  artillery  paraded  at  Morgan's  quarters; 
and  the  small  corps  of  Livingston  and  Brown  formed  at  their 
respective  parade-grounds.  At  five  o'clock,  the  hour  appointed  for 
moving  to  the  attack,  Montgomery  and  his  detachment  descended 
Wolfe's  ravine  from  the  Plains  of  Abraham,  and  advanced  along  the 
St.  Lawrence  toward  the  present  Champlain  street,  under  Cape 
Diamond,  and  Brown  made  the  feigned  attack  on  the  bastion 


718  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

upon  its  brow,  at  the  proper  moment.  Arnold,  at  the  same  time, 
advanced  from  the  general  hospital  around  the  north  side  of  the 
town  by  the  St.  Charles.  Snow  was  falling  fast,  and  a  furious  wind 
was  piling  it  in  such  frightful  drifts,  that  the  progress  of  the  troops, 
in  both  quarters,  was  very  slow. 

At  the  narrowest  point  between  the  cliff  and  the  river,  under 
Cape  Diamond,  the  British  had  a  battery  of  three-pounders,  loaded 
with  grape-shot,  placed  in  the  upper  story  of  a  strong  blockhouse. 
This  battery  was  in  charge  of  a  captain  of  Canadian  militia,  with 
thirty-eight  men ;  and  nine  seamen,  under  Captain  Barnsfare,  mas 
ter  of  a  transport,  were  there  to  work  the  guns.  In  front  of  this 
was  a  strong  palisade,  extending  from  the  steep  precipice  of  slate 
to  the  edge  of  the  river,  and  with  the  battery,  offered  effectual 
resistance  to  attack,  except  by  surprise.  This  Montgomery  at 
tempted.  In  the  face  of  the  blinding  storm,  he  cautiously  led  his 
troops  in  the  darkness,  over  masses  of  broken  ice  thrown  up  from 
the  river  by  the  wind  and  current ;  and  with  his  own  hands  he 
assisted  in  sawing  off  some  of  the  pickets,  so  as  to  admit  his  men 
to  the  narrow  pass  leading  to  the  blockhouse. 

Convinced  that  the  enemy  were  not  on  the  alert,  for  all  was 
silent  in  front,  and  that  the  surprise  would  be  complete  and  suc 
cessful,  Montgomery  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  his  troops,  and 
shouting,  "Men  of  New  York,  you  will  not  fear  to  follow  where 
your  general  leads — march  on!"  rushed  boldly  forward  to  capture 
the  battery.  But  vigilant  ears  and  eyes  had  observed  these  move 
ments.  The  day  was  faintly  dawning  when  the  first  barrier  was 
passed,  and  through  the  dim  light  and  drifting  snow,  Barnsfare 
had  watched  the  approach  of  the  Americans.  When  they  rushed 
forward,  and  were  within  forty  paces,  he  gave  the  word,  the  matches 
were  applied,  and  a  storm  of  grape-shot  swept  the  approaching 
column  with  terrible  effect.  Montgomery  and  his  aid  (Captain 
M'Pherson),  and  almost  every  other  man  in  the  narrow  pass,  were 
instantly  killed ;  and  Captain  Cheesman,  of  the  New  York  troops, 
was  mortally  wounded,  and  died  almost  immediately.  The  remain 
der  of  the  troops,  appalled  at  the  dreadful  scene,  and  the  loss  of 


uini 


there  to  slat 


:<  eply  drifted,  and  they  were  compelled  to  mi 
\mo&  W**i**irei|M  of  a  forlorn  hope  of  twen 
p;uiied  by  his  secretary,  Capt^m  Q*wald»*  ant1,  * 
company  of  artillery  dragging  a  field  -piece 
these  were  a  party  with  ladders  and  other  scali? 
;;»vvpd  by  Mortem  and  hiB  ri^oir^  n  •  and  m  the  i 


advance,  ent 

observe 
to  an 


drawn  off  i 
The  snov 


abandoned  ;  ar.-.i  »:>i  - 
of  ois  bold  and  tnw- 
ill  tern.     Arnold   :aj:-.  * 
fmi  minutes  since.  th^>  - 
off....     The  loss  of  m 
^Mviong  the  latter  is  M;i 
thb  other  volunteers,  he 
v\or(ls  i?,  that  Burr  v*as  *» 


jET.  43.]  ARNOLD'S  ATTACK.  719 

their  general,  fled  in  confusion  back  toward  Wolfe's  cove,  where 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Campbell,  the  quartermaster-general,  took  the 
command,  but  made  no  further  attempts  to  force  a  junction  with 
Arnold.  For  ten  minutes  that  little  battery  belched  its  iron  hail  in 
the  dim  space,  but  after  the  first  discharge  there  was  no  enemy 
there  to  slaughter. 

While  these  events  were  transpiring,  Arnold  was  pressing  along 
the  St.  Charles,  at  the  head  of  his  detachment.  The  snow  was 
deeply  drifted,  and  they  were  compelled  to  march  in  single  file. 
Arnold  was  at  the  head  of  a  forlorn  hope  of  twenty-five  men,  accom 
panied  by  his  secretary,  Captain  Oswald,*  and  followed  by  Lamb's 
company  of  artillery  dragging  a  field-piece  on  a  sledge.  Next  to 
these  were  a  party  with  ladders  and  other  scaling  implements,  fol 
lowed  by  Morgan  and  his  riflemen ;  and  in  the  rear  of  all  followed 
the  main  body.  They  passed  through  the  suburb  St.  Roque,  and 
approached  a  picketed  two-gun  battery,  at  a  narrow  pass  below  a 
projecting  crag  of  the  promontory  (now  the  street  called  Saut  an 
Matekt\  without  being  discovered.  But  just  as  Arnold,  with  the 
advance,  entered  the  narrow  pass  leading  to  the  battery,  they  were 
observed  by  the  sentinels,  and  the  whole  detachment  were  exposed 
to  an  enfilading  fire  from  the  walls  of  the  town,  and  pickets  of  the 
barrier.  Livingston  had  failed  to  make  the  feigned  attack  upon  St. 
Louis  gate,  and,  therefore,  the  attention  of  the  enemy  was  not 
drawn  off  from  Arnold's  movements. 

The  snow-drifts  had  now  become  almost  impassable,  and  the  field- 

*  Oswald  was  afterward  a  meritorious  artillery  officer,  and  rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel.  The 
impression  has  generally  prevailed,  that  Aaron  Burr  was  with  Montgomery  when  he  fell,  he  being 
one  of  his  aids ;  and  common  tradition,  under  the  guise  of  history,  has  made  him  the  bearer  of 
Montgomery's  body  away  from  the  place  of  his  death,  in  the  retreat  that  immediately  followed.  A 
paragraph  in  Colonel  Arnold's  letter,  written  from  the  general  hospital  during  the  progress  of  the 
contest  by  his  detachment,  appears  to  show  that  Burr  was  with  him.  We  have  seen  that  the  plan 
of  scaling  Cape  Diamond  bastion,  to  be  attempted  by  Burr,  at  the  head  of  a  forlorn  hope,  was 
abandoned  :  and  then,  no  doubt,  Burr  preferred  to  join  Arnold,  as  a  volunteer  in  the  siege,  because 
of  his  bold  and  more  reckless  character,  which  was  in  unison  with  the  feelings  of  the  young  sub 
altern.  Arnold  says,  in  his  letter  to  Wooster :  "  The  last  accounts  from  my  detachment,  about 
ten  minutes  since,  they  were  pushing  for  the  lower  town.  Their  communication  with  me  was  cut 
off. . . .  The  loss  of  my  detachment  .before  I  left  it,  was  about  twenty  men  killed  and  wounded. 
Among  the  latter  is  Major  Ogden  [Burr's  friendj,  who,  with  Captain  Oswald,  Captain  Burr,  and 
the  other  volunteers,  behaved  extremely  well."  The  only  fair  inference  to  be  drawn  from  these 
words  is,  that  Burr  was  with  Arnold's  division 


720  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

piece  became  so  firmly  imbedded  that  it  could  not  be  dragged 
further.  Notice  of  this  impediment  was  sent  to  Arnold,  and,  mean 
while,  the  artillery  company,  and  the  corps  prepared  for  an  escalade, 
halted,  the  latter  having  orders  to  keep  in  the  rear  of  the  former. 
The  fiery  Morgan,  perceiving  in  an  instant  what  disasters  must 
follow  a  strict  obedience  of  orders  in  this  case,  commanded  the 
sealers  to  move  forward.  The  artillery  company  opened  for  them 
to  pass,  and  Morgan  and  his  riflemen  followed.*  They  reached  the 
narrow  pass  just  as  Arnold  and  the  forlorn  hope  rushed  forward  to 
attack  the  barrier. 

Before  Arnold  reached  the  battery  he  was  shot  through  the  right 
leg,  near  the  knee,  with  a  musket-ball,  which  completely  disabled 
him,  and  he  was  borne  away  to  the  general  hospital.  As  he  was 
carried  back,  he  ordered  Lamb  to  abandon  his  field-piece,  and  to 
lead  forward  his  company  armed  with  muskets  and  bayonets,  to 
co-operate  with  the  forlorn  hope,  left  in  command  of  Captain 
Oswald.  When  he  reached  the  hospital  Arnold  heard  of  the  death 
of  Montgomery,  and,  although  writhing  with  pain,  and  faint  from 
loss  of  blood,  he  immediately  wrote  to  Wooster,  at  Montreal,  detail 
ing  the  events  of  the  morning  connected  with  his  division,  and 
expressing  his  determination  to  give  up  the  command  to  Lieuten 
ant-Colonel  Campbell,  on  account  of  the  severity  of  his  wound. 

The  command  of  Arnold's  division  now  devolved  on  Morgan. 
When  the  assailants  were  close  under  the  muzzles  of  the  battery,  it 
belched  forth  a  volley  of  grape-shot,  and  with  them  came  a  shower 
of  musket-balls.  Only  one  American  was  killed,  and  in  less  than 
two  minutes  the  terrible  effects  of  the  precision  of  Morgan's  rifle 
men  caused  the  enemy  to  abandon  the  barrier,  and  flee  in  confusion 
to  the  next,  which  commanded  both  Saut  au  Matekt  and  St. 
Peter's  streets. 

The  Americans  instantly  forced  the  first  barrier,  and  just  at 
dawn,  attacked  the  second.  The  defences  there  extended  from  the 
cliff  to  the  river,  and  the  present  (1858)  customhouse,  then  a 
private  dwelling,  had  cannon  projecting  from  the  wings  of  the 

*  Lcake's  Life  and  Times  of  General  Lamb,  page  129. 


JE-r.  43.]  QUEBEC  BLOCKADED.  723 

in  his  camp  under  the  walls  of  the  city,  he  withdrew  about  three 
miles,  intrenched  himself  as  well  as  he  could,  and  assumed  the  atti 
tude  of  a  blockade,  hoping  and  intending  to  cut  off  supplies  for  the 
garrison  from  the  country,  and  by  that  means  to  bring  the  British 
to  a  capitulation  before  the  ice  should  leave  the  St.  Lawrence.  "I 
have  no  thought,"  he  wrote,  "  of  leaving  this  proud  town  until  I 
enter  it  in  triumph.  I  am  in  the  way  of  my  duty,  and  I  know  no 
fear."  Yet  he  had  some  fears  concerning  the  fate  of  his  little  army. 
"  Everything  remains  quiet  here  at  present,"  he  wrote  to  Wooster. 
"  I  believe  the  enemy  dare  not  venture  out,  though  they  threaten  it. 
I  pray  God  they  may  not,  for  we  are  in  a  miserable  condition  to 
receive  them."  He  adds:  "Some  of  the  country  people  came  in 
to  our  assistance.  In  general  they  appear  friendly  and  concerned 
for  us.  Many  offer  to  join  us  who  have  no  arms."* 

In  this  relative  position  the  belligerents  at  Quebec  remained 
until  April,  when  General  Wooster,  who  had  been  inactive  all 
winter  at  Montreal,  came  down  with  reinforcements,  and  being 
superior  in  rank  to  Arnold,  took  the  chief  command. 

*  Autograph  Letter. 


724  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   LX1. 

CONDITION    OF  THE    ARMY    AT    CAMBRIDGE WASHINGTON'S    ANXIETIES COUNCIL 

OF    WAR    CALLED AN    ATTACK    ON    THE    ENEMY    PROPOSED    BY    WASHINGTON 

REJECTED  BY  THE  COUNCIL WASHINGTON'S  COMPLAINTS CONGRESS  REBUKED 

THEIR    PROCEEDINGS EFFECT    OF  WASHINGTON'S    LETTER  ON  THE  CONGRESS 

COMMITTEE  OF  CONFERENCE  APPOINTED GAGE  RECALLED  AND  SUPERSEDED 

BY    HOWE BRITISH     CRUISERS     ON     THE     NEW    ENGLAND     COASTS FALMOUTH 

DESTROYED GENERAL  EXCITEMENT THE  CONFERENCE  AT    HEADQUARTERS 

THE  RESULT NEW  ARRANGEMENTS DOCTOR  FRANKLIN  AT  CAMBRIDGE. 

AT  the  beginning  of  September*  Washington  felt  extremely 
anxious  to  measure  strength  and  skill  in  battle  with  the  enemy. 
Recruits  had  come  in  quite  as  freely  as  he  had  anticipated ;  his 
stock  of  ammunition,  though  not  large,  was  considered  sufficient ; 
and  the  people  throughout  the  confederacy  were  beginning  to 
murmur  because  of  the  comparative  inaction  of  the  troops  at 
Boston.  That  inaction  was  deplorable,  for  Washington  well  knew 
that  it  must  necessarily  demoralize  and  weaken  the  army ;  and  the 
season  was  fast  approaching  when  large  and  costly  supplies  of 
clothing,  provisions,  and  shelter,  must  be  procured  if  the  siege 
should  be  long  protracted.  These  and  similar  considerations  gave 
him  much  uneasiness,  for  already  many  of  the  soldiers  were  restless 
with  longings  for  home. 

The  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  troops  were  engaged  only 
until  the  first  of  December,  and  Washington  had  ample  reasons  for 

*  Early  in  that  month,  Washington  received  a  letter  from  Peyton  Kandolph,  dated  the  sixth, 
saying :  "  I  have  it  in  command  to  transmit  to  you  the  thanks  of  the  convention  of  Virginia,  for 
the  faithful  discharge  of  the  important  trust  reposed  in  you,  as  one  of  their  delegates  to  the  conti 
nental  Congress.  Your  appointment  to  an  office  of  much  consequence  to  America,  and  incompati 
ble  with  your  attendance  on  this  duty,  was  the  only  reason  that  could  have  induced  them  not  to  call 
you  to  the  convention.  Your  brother  delegates  were  unanimous  in  their  acknowledgments ;  and 
you  will  believe  it  gives  me  the  greatest  satisfaction  to  convey  to  you  the  sentiments  of  your  country 
men,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  give  you  every  testimony  of  my  approbation  and  esteem." 


/ET.  43.]  COUNCIL  OF  WAR.  725 

believing  that  a  larger  portion  of  his  army  would  not  agree  to 
serve  longer  than  the  approaching  first  of  January.  It  was  im 
portant,  therefore,  that  some  decisive  movement  should  be  made  as 
speedily  as  prudence  would  allow;  and  the  commander-in-chief 
waited  impatiently  for  several  days,  for  the  enemy  to  accept  the 
challenge  to  combat  which  he  had  fairly  made  by  taking  position 
on  Ploughed  hill.  "Unless  the  ministerial  troops  in  Boston  are 
waiting  for  reinforcements,"  he  wrote,  "  I  can  not  divine  what  they 
are  staying  for,  nor  why,  as  they  affect  to  despise  the  Americans, 
they  do  not  come  forth  and  put  an  end  to  the  contest  at  once." 

Washington's  anxieties  at  length  found  expression  which  led  to 
action.  On  the  eighth  of  September  he  addressed  a  circular  letter 
to  the  major  and  brigadier  generals  of  the  army,  informing  them 
that  he  should  call  upon  them  in  a  day  or  two  for  their  opinions 
concerning  matters  to  which  he  alluded,  and  giving  them  topics  for 
reflection  in  the  meantime.  He  told  them  that  he  wished  to  know 
whether  a  successful  attack  upon  the  troops  in  Boston  might  be 
made  by  means  of  boats,  in  co-operation  with  an  attempt  upon  the 
British  lines  at  Roxbury.  "The  success  of  such  an  enterprise 
depends,  I  well  know,"  he  said,  "upon  the  All- Wise  Disposer  of 
events,  and  it  is  not  within  the  reach  of  human  wisdom  to  foresee 
the  issue ;  but  if  the  prospect  is  fair,"  he  added,  "  the  undertaking 
is  justifiable  for  the  following,  among  other  reasons."  He  then 
enumerated  those  we  have  already  alluded  to ;  and  in  reference  to 
the  impatience  of  the  troops  to  go  home,  and  the  expiring  enlist> 
ments,  he  said :  "  These  things  are  not  unknown  to  the  enemy ; 
perhaps  it  is  the  very  ground  they  are  building  on,  if  they  are  not 
waiting  for  a  large  reinforcement;  and  if  they  are  waiting  for 
succor,  ought  it  not  to  give  a  spur  to  the  attempt  ?  Our  powder, 
not  much  of  which  will  be  consumed  in  such  an  enterprise,  without 
any  certainty  of  supply,  is  daily  wasting ;  and,  to  sum  up  the  whole, 
the  expense  of  supporting  this  army  will  so  far  exceed  any  idea 
that  was  formed  in  Congress  of  it,  that  I  do  not  know  what  will  be 
the  consequences." 

The  council  of  war  was  accordingly  assembled  at  headquarters, 


7-26  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

on  Monday,  the  eleventh  of  September.  It  was  composed  of  the 
commander-in-chief ;  Major-Generals  Ward,  Lee,  and  Putnam ;  and 
Brigadier-Generals  Thomas,  Heath,  Spencer,  Sullivan,  and  Greene. 
After  mature  deliberation,  the  council  unanimously  resolved  :  "  That 
it  was  not  expedient  to  make  the  attempt  at  present,  at  least." 
This  decision  was  acquiesced  in  by  Washington,  yet  it  was  contrary 
to  his  desires.  In  a  long  letter  to  the  continental  Congress,  written 
on  the  twenty-first,  in  which  he  gave  a  general  outline  of  his  plans, 
performances,  and  expectations,  and  information  concerning  Ar 
nold's  expedition,  then  pushing  on  toward  the  wilderness,  he  alluded 
to  the  result  of  the  council,  and  said,  concerning  his  proposition  to 
attack  the  British  troops :  "  I  can  not  say  that  I  have  wholly  laid 
it  aside ;  but  new  events  may  need  new  measures.  Of  this  I  hope 
the  honorable  Congress  can  need  no  assurance,  that  there  is  not  a 
man  in  America  who  more  earnestly  wishes  such  a  termination  of 
the  campaign,  as  to  make  the  army  no  longer  necessary."  Having 
briefly  stated  the  condition,  wants,  and  importunities  of  the  army, 
and  the  perplexities  that  beset  him,  he  added  : — 

"  It  gives  me  great  pain  to  be  obliged  to  solicit  the  attention  of 
the  honorable  Congress  to  the  state  of  this  army,  in  terms  which 
imply  the  slightest  apprehension  of  being  neglected.  But  my 
situation  is  inexpressibly  distressing,  to  see  the  winter  fast  approach 
ing  upon  a  naked  army,  the  time  of  their  service  within  a  few 
weeks  of  expiring,  and  no  provision  yet  made  for  such  important 
events.  Added  to  these,  the  military  chest  is  totally  exhausted; 
the  paymaster  has  not  a  single  dollar  in  hand;  the  commissary- 
general  assures  me  he  has  strained  his  credit,  for  the  subsistence  of 
the  army,  to  the  utmost.  The  quartermaster-general  is  in  precisely 
the  same  situation;  and  the  greater  part  of  the  troops  are  in  a 
state  not  far  from  mutiny,  upon  the  deduction  from  their  stated 
allowance.  I  know  not  to  whom  I  am  to  impute  this  failure ;  but 
I  am  of  opinion,  if  the  evil  is  not  immediately  remedied,  and  more 
punctuality  observed  in  future,  the  army  must  absolutely  break  up. 
I  hoped  I  had  so  fully  expressed  myself  on  this  subject,  both  by 
letter,  and  to  those  members  of  the  Congress  who  honored  the 


JET.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  COMPLAINTS.  727 

camp  with  a  visit,  that  no  disappointment  could  possibly  happen. 
I  therefore  hourly  expected  advices  from  the  paymaster,  that  he 
had  received  a  fresh  supply."*  He  then  informed  them,  that  mat 
ters  were  brought  to  such  a  crisis  that  no  further  uncertain  expecta 
tions  were  admissible.^ 

This  letter,  conveying  a  palpable  rebuke  to  the  Congress  for 
their  tardiness,  was  despatched  by  an  express,  and  in  it  Washington 
urged  them  to  send  the  bearer  back  with  a  reply,  "  with  all  possible 
expedition,"  unless  they  had  already  forwarded  the  necessary  sup 
plies.  Thus,  it  will  be  perceived,  that  within  three  months  after 
his  appointment  to  the  chief  command  of  the  army,  Washington 
felt  compelled  to  complain  of  the  lack  of  prompt  co-operation  of 
the  supreme  civil  power ;  and  throughout  the  war,  that  body  often 
lay  like  a  dead  weight  upon  the  movements  of  the  army,  embar 
rassing  it  by  special  instructions,  and  neglecting  to  give  its  aid 
when  most  needed.  It  was  only  during  the  six  months,  when 
Washington  was  invested  with  the  powers  of  an  absolute  dictator, 
that  his  most  brilliant  military  achievements  were  accomplished. 

The  continental  Congress,  pursuant  to  adjournment,  were  to 
reassemble  on  Wednesday,  the  fifth  of  September,  but  the  dele 
gates  came  in  so  slowly  that  it  was  not  organized  until  more  than  a 
week  later,  when  representatives  from  Georgia  appeared  for  the 
first  time.J  In  several  colonies,  new  deputies  had,  in  the  meantime, 

[ 

*  Sparks's  Life  and  Writing?  of  Washington,  iii.,  98. 

t  A  week  later,  Colonel  Reed,  Washington's  secretary,  writing  to  a  friend,  said  :  "  While  we 
deliberate  the  opportunities  are  lost.  Boston  must,  I  fear,  be  given  up  for  the  common  safety.  The 
army  and  navy  here  must,  at  all  events,  be  destroyed  this  winter.  Should  it  be  reinforced,  the  con 
sequences  to  America  will  be  dreadful ....  The  general  is  anxious  to  strike  some  decisive  stroke, 
and  would  have  done  it  before  this,  if  matters  had  not  been  misrepresented  to  him." — Life  and 
Correspondence  of  President  Reed,  i.  120. 

J  These  were  Archibald  Bullock,  John  Houstoun,  and  Reverend  Doctor  Zubley.  John  Adams, 
in  his  Diary,  has  given  a  graphic  sketch  of  some  of  the  leading  members  in  the  Congress  at  that 
time.  "Dr.  Zubley,"  he  says,  "is  a  native  of  Switzerland,  and  a  clergyman  of  the  independent 
persuasion,  settled  in  a  parish  in  Georgia.  Pie  speaks,  as  is  reported,  several  languages ....  He  is 
a  man  of  a  warm  and  zealous  spirit ....  Houstoun  is  a  young  gentleman,  by  profession  a  lawyer. 
He  seems  to  be  sensible  and  spirited,  but  rather  inexperienced.  Bullock  is  clothed  in  American 
manufacture."  Of  the  Virginia  delegates  he  remarks  :  "Nelson  is  a  fat  man,  like  the  late  Colonel 
Lee,  of  Marblehead.  He  is  a  speaker,  and  alert  and  lively  for  his  weight.  Wythe  is  a  lawyer,  it  is 
said,  of  the  first  eminence.  Lee  [Francis  Lightfoot],  is  a  brother  of  Doctor  Arthur,  the  late  sheriff 
of  London,  and  of  our  old  friend,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  sensible  and  patriotic,  as  the  rest  of  the 
family."  Of  others  he  said :  "  Chase  is  violent  and  boisterous,  asking  his  pardon ;  he  is  tedious 


728  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

been  chosen,  or  old  ones  re-chosen  by  representatives  of  the  people 
in  convention  assembled ;  and  the  second  session  of  the  continental 
Congress  of  1775,  was  remarkable  for  the  wisdom  and  talent  it 
exhibited. 

The  first  important  business  of  the  session  was  an  order  for  the 
despatch  of  over  half  a  million  of  dollars,  under  a  proper  escort,  to 
the  paymaster-general  at  Cambridge,  for  the  use  of  the  army 
besieging  Boston,  thus  anticipating,  by  a  few  days,  Washington's 
urgent  call  for  money.  Various  measures  were  then  adopted  for 
strengthening  General  Schuyler,  and  carrying  on  the  war  in  the 
northern  department;  and  on  the  twenty-second  of  September,  a 
committee,  consisting  of  Doctor  Franklin,  and  Messrs.  Rutledge, 
Jay,  Randolph,  Johnson,  Deane,  and  Willing,  were  appointed  "  to 
take  into  consideration  the  state  of  the  trade  of  America,  and 
report  their  opinion." 

A  committee  of  accounts  or  claims  was  appointed  on  the  twenty- 
fifth,  consisting  of  one  member  from  each  colony ;  and  four  days 
afterward,  Washington's  letter  of  the  twenty-first  was  received,  and 
elicited  the  most  profound  attention.  The  justice  of  his  complaints 
and  implied  rebuke  of  the  Congress,  because  of  their  tardiness,  the 
urgent  wants  of  the  army,  the  dangers  to  be  apprehended  on 
account  of  delay,  and  the  necessity  of  the  prompt  and  efficient 
co-operation  of  the  civil  with  the  military  power,  were  so  apparent, 
that  on  the  same  day,  it  was  resolved  to  appoint  a  committee  of 
three  members,  "  to  repair  immediately  to  the  camp  at  Cambridge, 
to  confer  with  General  Washington,  and  with  the  governor  of 

upon  frivolous  points.  So  is  E.  Rutledge ....  a  very  uncouth  and  ungraceful  speaker;  he  shrugs 
his  shoulders,  distorts  his  body,  nods  and  wriggles  with  his  head,  and  looks  about  with  his  eyes  from 
side  to  side,  and  speaks  through  his  nose  as  the  Yankees  sing.  His  brother  John  dodges  his  head 
too,  rather  disagreeably,  and  both  of  them  spout  out  their  language  in  a  rough  and  rapid  torrent, 
but  without  much  force  or  effect.  Dyer  is  long-winded,  round  about,  obscure,  and  cloudy,  very 
talkative,  and  vcrv  tedious,  yet  an  honest,  worthy  man,  means  and  judges  well.  Sherman's  air  is 
the  reverse  of  grace ;  there  can  not  be  a  more  striking  contrast  to  beautiful  action  than  the  motion 
of  his  hands.  Generally  he  stands  upright,  with  his  hands  before  him,  the  fingers  of  his  left  hand 
clenched  into  a  fist,  and  the  wrist  of  it  grasped  with  the  right ....  Dickinson's  air,  gait,  and  action, 
are  not  much  more  elegant."  Of  Doctor  Rush,  he  said:  "He  is  an  elegant,  ingenuous  body,  a 
spriglitly,  pretty  fellow.  He  is  a  republican  ;  he  has  been  much  in  London  ;  Sawbridge  and  Macau- 
lay  correspond  with  him ....  But  Rush,  I  think,  is  too  much  of  a  talker  to  be  a  deep  thinker ; 
elegant,  not  great. 


/F/r.  43.]  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWNS  IN  PERIL.  729 

Connecticut,  lieutenant-governor  of  Rhode  Island,*  the  council  of 
Massachusetts,  and  the  president  of  the  convention  of  New  Hamp 
shire,  and  such  other  persons"  as  the  committee  might  deem  proper 
to  consult,  "  touching  the  most  effectual  method  of  continuing, 
supporting,  and  regulating,  a  continental  army."')*  The  committee 
was  appointed  on  the  following  day,  and  consisted  of  Doctor 
Franklin,  and  Messrs.  Thomas  Lynch,  of  South  Carolina,  and  Ben 
jamin  Harrison,  of  Virginia.  A  committee  of  five  was  then  ap 
pointed,  to  draw  up  instructions  for  Franklin  and  his  associates : 
and  expresses  were  despatched,  to  inform  the  commander-in-chief 
and  the  other  authorities  named,  of  this  action.  The  instructions 
were  reported  and  adopted  on  Monday,  the  second  of  October,  and 
on  the  fourth,  the  committee  set  out  for  the  camp  at  Cambridge, 
carrying  with  them  three  hundred  thousand  dollars,  in  continental 
money,  for  the  use  of  the  army. 

In  the  meantime,  Washington  had  been  urgently  importuned  for 
detachments  from  the  army  to  defend  the  towns  along  the  New 
England  coasts  from  threatened  pillage  and  destruction.  Early  in 
September,  British  men-of-war  transports  were  menacing  the  coasts 
of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island.  Stonington  was  actually  can 
nonaded,  and  New  London  and  Norwich  were  imperiled  by  the 
presence  of  hostile  vessels-of-war.  Governor  Trumbull,  therefore, 
detained  several  companies  of  Connecticut  levies,  raised  for  the 
continental  army,  to  assist  the  militia  in  defending  these  places; 
but  Washington,  who  needed  more  strength  in  the  presence  of  the 
foe  in  Boston,  could  not  spare  a  man.  So,  as  on  an  earlier  occasion, 
he  was  compelled  to  deny  the  assistance  implored,  and  repeated 
his  resolution  to  leave  the  people  to  rely  upon  the  local  militia  to 
defend  isolated  points.  He,  therefore,  ordered  the  Connecticut 

*  Nicholas  Cooke,  already  mentioned,  was  deputy-governor  of  Rhode  Island.     When  the  general 
assembly  of  that  colony  voted  to  raise  a  force  of  fifteen  hundred  men  for  the  gathering  army  at 
Boston,  Joseph  Wanton,  the  colonial  governor,  was  displeased.     After  being  rechosen,  in  May,  that 
year,  he  failed  to  appear  and  take  the  prescribed  oath  of  office.     Mr.  Cooke,  his  deputy,  entered 
heartily  into  the  views  of  the  assembly.     In  June,  the  timid  Wanton  came  forward  to  qualify,  but 
as  he  had  not  given  satisfaction  to  the  assembly,  his  demand  was  unheeded,  and  Cooke  became  the 
acting-governor. 

*  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  193. 


730  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

levies  to  march  immediately  to  camp,  contrary  to  the  desires  of 
Governor  Trumbull.  But  that  patriotic  magistrate  promptly  obeyed 
orders  and  sent  them  on ;  and  to  a  letter  of  his  to  the  commander- 
in-chief,  written  on  the  fifteenth,  Washington  replied  on  the  twenty- 
first:  "I  wish  I  could  extend  protection  to  all;  but  the  numerous 
detachments  necessary  to  remedy  the  evil,  would  amount  to  a  dis 
solution  of  the  army,  or  make  the  most  important  operations  of 
the  campaign  depend  upon  the  piratical  expeditions  of  two  or 
three  men-of-war  transports." 

A  change  in  the  chief  command  of  the  British  army  at  Boston 
now  took  place.  Gage's  laurels  had  faded  since  the  battle  of 
Bunker's  hill.  That  battle  was  regarded,  in  England,  as  a  military 
blunder ;  and,  alarmed  at  the  continued  and  rapid  spread  of  the 
rebellion  in  America,  the  ministry  advised  the  recall  of  Gage.  It 
was  done  in  the  most  delicate  manner  by  the  king.  Gage  was  not, 
apparently,  superseded  in  office.  He  was  summoned  home  in  order 
to  make  a  personal  explanation  of  affairs  at  Boston — "to  give  his 
majesty  exact  information  of  everything  that  it  may  be  necessary 
to  prepare,  as  early  as  possible,  for  the  operations  of  next  year,  and 
to  suggest  to  his  majesty  such  matters  in  relation  thereto,  as  his 
knowledge  and  experience  of  the  service  enabled  him  to  furnish ;" 
General  Howe  to  act  as  commander-in-chief  of  all  the  British  forces 
in  the  revolted  colonies  during  Gage's  absence.  This  summons  im 
plied  censure,  and  it  wounded  the  sensitive  spirit  of  the  disappointed 
soldier.  Into  that  wound  his  tory  friends  in  Massachusetts  poured 
some  oil  of  consolation.  The  mandamus  council,  a  number  of  the 
principal  inhabitants  of  Boston,  and  several  who  had  taken  refuge 
in  the  country,  in  all  about  seventy  persons,  addressed  him  in  terms 
of  loyal  affection,  amounting  to  panegyric.  This  was  unmerited, 
for  Gage's  civil  administration  had  been  weak,  and  his  military 
operations  exceedingly  inefficient.  This  was  felt  by  all  parties,  and 
his  departure  was  popular  with  the  army.  He  sailed  for  England 
on  the  tenth  of  October,  and  never  returned  to  America.* 

*  Thomas  Gage,  the  last  royal  governor  of  Massachusetts,  was  a  native  of  England,  and  was  an 
active  officer  during  the  Seven  Years'  War.  He  was  appointed  governor  of  Montreal  in  1760,  and, 


JET.  43.]  HOWE'S   PRUDENCE.  731 

On  the  day  when  Gage  departed,  General  Howe  issued  the  follow 
ing  order :  "  The  king  having  ordered  the  commander-in-chief  to 
repair  to  Britain,  and  that,  during  his  absence,  Major-General 
Carleton  should  command  his  majesty's  forces  in  Canada,  and  upon 
the  frontiers,  with  the  full  powers  of  commander-in-chief;  and  that 
Major-General  Howe  should  have  like  command  within  the  colonies 
on  the  Atlantic  ocean,  from  Nova  Scotia  to  West  Florida,  inclusive ; 
orders  are  hereby  given  to  the  troops  to  obey  the  said  major-gen 
erals  accordingly." 

Howe  at  once  adopted  rigorous  measures ;  and  the  continentals, 
remembering  the  fine  military  spirit  which  he  displayed  at  Bunker's 
hill,  anticipated  an  early  opportunity  to  engage  in  battle  with  the 
enemy.  But  Howe  had  become  acquainted  with  the  temper  and 
spirit  of  the  people,  and  was  as  averse  as  Gage  had  been  to  meeting 
them  again  in  open  warfare.  He  compared  past  events,  and  drew 
such  logical  conclusions  therefrom  as  made  him  exceedingly  cautious. 
He  remembered  the  bravery  of  the  Americans  on  Breed's  hill, 
when  a  fatigued  army,  greatly  inferior  in  numbers  to  their  oppo 
nents,  had  gallantly  maintained  their  position  for  hours,  behind 
breastworks  cast  up  in  a  single  night.  He  properly  argued,  that 
an  army  of  the  same  sort  of  men,  fifteen  thousand  strong,  in 
trenched  behind  breastworks  constructed  by  the  labor  of  many 
weeks,  must  be  more  than  a  match  for  even  his  disciplined  troops 
of  like  number,  and  he  prudently  resolved  to  await  expected  rein 
forcements  from  Ireland,  before  he  should  attempt  to  procure  that 

jit  the  departure  of  Amherst  for  England,  in  1763,  was  commissioned  commander-in-chief  of  the  Brit 
ish  forces  in  America.  He  superseded  Hutchinson  as  governor  of  Massachusetts,  and  had  the  misfor 
tune  to  enter  upon  the  duties  of  his  office  at  a  time  when  it  became  necessary  for  him,  as  a  faithful 
servant  of  his  king,  to  execute  laws  framed  expressly  for  the  infliction  of  chastisement  upon  the  people 
of  the  capital  of  the  colony  over  which  he  was  placed.  From  that  date  his  public  acts  are  interwoven 
with  the  history  of  the  times,  as  given  in  preceding  pages.  He  possessed  a  naturally  amiable  dis 
position,  and  his  benevolence  often  outweighed  his  justice  in  the  scale  of  duty.  Under  other  cir 
cumstances  his  name  might  have  been  sweet  in  the  recollection  of  the  Americans ;  now  it  is  identi 
fied  with  oppression  and  hatred  of  freedom.  He  expected  to  return  to  America,  but  was  not  allowed 
to  do  so.  The  veteran  general  Oglethorpe,  the  benevolent  founder  of  the  colony  of  Georgia,  and 
a  hero  in  the  rebellion  of  '45,  was  offered  the  command  in  America ;  but  he  refused  to  accept  the 
commission,  unless  he  could  go  to  the  revolted  colonists  with  assurances  from  government  that  strict 
justice  should  be  done  them.  The  command  was  accordingly  given  to  Howe  —  a  tacit  admission 
of  the  corrupt  ministry,  that  justice  to  the  Americans  was  no  part  of  their  policy.  General  Gage 
died  in  England  in  April,  1787,  at  the  age  of  about  fifty  years. 


732  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

freedom  of  action  in  the  open  country,  which  he  so  much  coveted. 
In  a  letter  to  Lord  Dartmouth,  on  the  ninth  of  October,  he  revealed 
a  glimpse  of  future  policy,  when  he  said  he  hoped  "  to  distress  the 
rebels  by  incursions  along  the  coasts,"  and  that  "  Portsmouth,  in 
New  Hampshire,  would  feel  the  weight  of  his  majesty's  arms." 

A  marauding  policy  was  now  inaugurated,  in  accordance  with 
the  hints  thrown  out  by  Howe.  An  event  that  had  occurred  at 
about  the  middle  of  the  previous  month  of  May,  on  the  coast  of 
Maine,  served  to  give  the  British  some  reasonable  excuse  for  this 
policy  of  retaliation  upon  an  enemy.  When  intelligence  of  the 
affair  at  Lexington  reached  Machias,  where  a  British  armed 
schooner  was  engaged  with  two  smaller  vessels  in  procuring  lum 
ber,  a  party  of  young  men  attempted  her  capture  while  the  officers 
were  at  church  on  shore.  They  seized  one  of  the  sloops,  chased 
the  schooner  out  of  the  harbor,  and  after  a  severe  conflict,  com 
pelled  her  to  surrender.  In  this,  the  first  naval  engagement  of  the 
Revolution,  about  twenty  men  on  each  side  were  lost.  The  com 
mander  of  the  Americans  on  this  occasion*  soon  afterward  captured 
two  small  English  cruisers,  and  sent  the  crews  to  Watertown  as 
prisoners. 

On  the  twelfth  of  October  a  naval  skirmish  occurred  at  Beverly. 
A  privateer  was  chased  into  that  harbor  by  the  Nautilus  man-of-war. 
Both  got  aground.  The  inhabitants  carried  the  guns  of  the  priva 
teer  ashore,  and  pointed  them  against  the  British  ship.  A  brisk 
cannonade  was  opened  between  them  and  the  Nautilus.  The  priva 
teer  was  not  much  damaged,  and  when  the  Nautilus  was  driven 
away  at  the  rising  of  the  tide,  the  former  was  rearmed  and  manned. 
These  and  similar  exploits  greatly  irritated  the  British;  and  Ad 
miral  Graves,  in  retaliation,  sent  an  expedition,  in  October,  to  burn 
Falmouth  (now  Portland),  in  Maine. 

The  immediate  offence  of  the  inhabitants  of  Falmouth,  was  their 

*  The  commander  was  Jeremiah  O'Brien.  The  honor  of  the  enterprise  belongs  to  Joseph 
Wheaton,  a  native  of  New  York,  then  residing  at  Machias.  He  was  an  energetic  young  man  of 
twenty  years.  He  first  proposed  the  expedition  against  the  British  armed  vessels,  but  modestly 
named  O'Brien  for  commander.  He  was  active  in  the  whole  affair,  and  his  own  hands  seized  the 
colors  of  the  captured  vessel. 


&T.  43.]  DESTRUCTION  OF  FALMOUTH.  733 

compliance  with  a  resolution  of  the  provincial  Congress  of  Massa 
chusetts,  to  prevent  tories  carrying  away  their  effects.  They  had 
obstructed  the  loading  of  a  ship,  and  Graves  sent  Lieutenant 
Mowatt,  with  a  small  squadron,  to  chastise  them.  He  anchored 
before  Falmouth  on  the  evening  of  the  seventeenth  of  October, 
and  sent  a  letter  on  shore,  warning  the  inhabitants  that  within  two 
hours  he  should  burn  the  town,  pursuant  to  orders.  A  committee 
went  on  board  his  vessel  and  asked  his  reasons  for  the  cruel  threat. 
He  replied,  that  he  had  orders  to  burn  every  seaport  town  between 
Boston  and  Halifax ;  but  he  agreed  to  give  them  a  respite  until  the 
next  morning,  at  the  same  time  proposing  some  unreasonable  terms 
of  submission,  to  secure  the  safety  of  the  place.  Those  terms  were 
not  complied  with,  and  from  early  in  the  forenoon  until  dark  the 
following  day,  he  hurled  about  three  thousand  shot,  besides  shells 
and  carcasses,  upon  the  doomed  town.  These,  and  some  marines, 
kindled  a  terrible  conflagration,  and  when  the  curtain  of  night  fell 
upon  the  scene,  one  hundred  and  thirty-nine  houses,  and  two 
hundred  and  seventy-eight  stores  and  other  buildings,  were  in  ashes 
or  in  flames.  But  the  resolute  men  of  Falmouth,  after  removing 
women,  children,  and  furniture,  gallantly  maintained  their  ground, 
repulsed  the  invaders,  and  prevented  their  landing.  Fortunately 
no  lives  were  lost. 

This  wanton  destruction  of  property  created  intense  excitement 
throughout  the  colonies  —  an  excitement  engendered  by  apprehen 
sion  and  indignation.  Washington  was  disposed  to  believe  the 
cruel  assertions  of  Mowatt,  that  all  the  seaport  towns  of  New 
England  were  to  share  the  fate  of  Falmouth.  To  General  Schuyler 
he  wrote :  "  We  expect  every  moment  to  hear  other  places  have 
been  attempted,  which  are  better  prepared  for  their  reception."- 
"  The  desolation  and  misery,"  he  said,  in  a  letter  to  the  committee 
of  Falmouth,  a  few  days  afterward,  who  applied  to  him  for  succor, 
"  which  ministerial  vengeance  had  planned,  in  contempt  of  every 
principle  of  humanity,  I  know  not  how  sufficiently  to  commiserate. 
Nor  can  my  compassion  for  the  general  suffering  be  conceived 
beyond  the  true  measure  of  my  feelings."  And  his  utter  inability 


734  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

to  give  them  aid,  without  endangering  the  very  existence  of  his 
army,  distressed  him  greatly.  "  Thus  circumstanced,"  he  said,  "  I  can 
only  add  my  wishes  and  exhortations,  that  you  may  repel  every 
future  attempt  to  perpetrate  the  like  savage  cruelties."  He  sent 
General  Sullivan  to  Portsmouth,  to  prepare  the  fort  there  for  a 
defence  of  the  town ;  and  to  the  president  of  Congress  he  wrote : 
"  I  expect  every  hour  to  hear  that  Newport  has  shared  the  same 
fate  of  unhappy  Falmouth."  And  General  Greene  afterward  wrote 
to  a  friend :  "  0,  could  the  Congress  behold  the  distresses  and 
wretched  condition  of  the  poor  inhabitants  driven  from  the  seaport 
towns,  it  must,  it  would,  kindle  a  blaze  of  indignation  against  the 
commissioned  pirates  and  licensed  robbers." 

A  general  belief  in  the  truth  of  Mowatt's  assertion  produced 
greater  vigilance  and  activity  everywhere.  It  led  to  the  establish 
ment  of  a  board  of  admiralty  by  the  assembly  of  Massachusetts, 
and  called  the  attention  of  Congress  to  the  vital  importance  and 
necessity  of  a  navy.  In  Great  Britain  the  savage  policy  thus 
proclaimed  was  denounced  by  the  best  men ;  and  the  ministry, 
perceiving  the  proclivity  of  public  opinion  toward  humane  meas 
ures,  affected  to  be  displeased  with  the  destruction  of  Falmouth, 
and  endeavored  to  cast  the  odium  upon  the  naval  officers  engaged 
in  the  work.  But  this  was  hypocritical  pretence,  unworthy  of 
honest  and  honorable  men,  for  a  despatch  from  Lord  Dartmouth, 
dated  at  London,  only  four  days  after  Falmouth  was  destroyed, 
authorized  Howe  to  employ  the  troops  in  "attacking  and  doing 
their  utmost  to  destroy  any  towns  in  which  the  people  should 
assemble  in  arms,  hold  meetings  of  committees  or  congresses,  or 
prevent  the  king's  courts  of  justice  from  assembling." 

On  the  same  day  when  Falmouth  was  destroyed,  the  committee 
of  Congress,  who  had  arrived  on  the  fifteenth,  commenced  the 
proposed  conference  with  Washington  and  others  in  the  camp  at 
Cambridge.  Deputy-Governor  Griswold  and  Judge  Wales,  of 
Connecticut ;  Deputy-Governor  Cooke,  of  Rhode  Island ;  Bowdoin, 
Otis,  Sever,  and  Spooner,  members  of  the  Massachusetts  council, 
and  Mathew  Thornton,  president  of  the  provincial  convention  of 


2ET.  43.]  CIVIL  AND  MILITARY  CONFERENCE.  735 

New  Hampshire,  were  present.  General  Washington  was  the  only 
member  of  the  council  who  was  skilled  in  military  affairs.  He  was 
chosen  to  preside,  and  his  secretary,  Colonel  Keed,  was  appointed 
to  keep  the  minutes.* 

A  plan  which  had  been  previously  discussed  and  matured  in  a 
council  of  officers,  was  presented  by  Washington,  and  in  the  main 
adopted.  It  was  conceded  that  the  American  forces  ought  to  be 
numerically  twice  as  large  as  those  of  the  enemy  in  Boston,  and, 
accordingly,  a  new  organization  of  the  army,  to  take  effect  on  the 
first  day  of  the  following  January,  was  agreed  upon.  Twenty-six 
regiments,  composed  of  eight  companies  each,  besides  riflemen  and 
artillery,  were  to  be  enlisted.  This  would  make  an  army  of  over 
twenty  thousand  men ;  and  the  delegates  present  expressed  their 
belief  that  thirty-two  thousand  men  might  be  raised  in  the  four 
New  England  colonies,  to  serve  for  one  year,  the  time  fixed  by 
Congress  for  all  the  enlistments.  They  estimated  that  twenty 
thousand  men  might  be  raised  in  Massachusetts,  eight  thousand  in 
Connecticut,  three  thousand  in  New  Hampshire,  and  fifteen  hundred 
in  Rhode  Island.  They  also  counted  upon  retaining  a  large  num 
ber  then  in  the  army,  by  re-enlistment. 

The  committee  of  Congress  continued  to  sit  for  several  days  after 
the  conference  was  dissolved,  and  took  various  subjects  into  con 
sideration.  They  revised  the  articles  of  war ;  made  regulations  for 
the  disposition  of  prizes  captured  at  sea,  for  the  exchange  of  pris 
oners,  the  employment  of  Indians,  and  many  local  details.  Mean 
while,  Washington  called  another  council  of  war,  in  consequence 
of  an  intimation  of  Congress,  borne  by  the  committee,  that  an 
attack  upon  Boston  was  much  desired.  It  was  known  that  at  least 
two  of  the  committee  were  in  favor  of  bombarding  the  town. 
Doctor  Belknap  relates,  that  he  was  at  dinner  with  several  military 

*  Private  affairs  demanding  Mr.  Reed's  presence  in  Pennsylvania,  he  left  the  camp  on  the  thir 
tieth  of  October,  and  was  succeeded  in  office  by  Robert  Hanson  Harrison,  a  lawyer  of  Alexandria, 
whom  Washington  well  knew  and  esteemed.  Harrison  arrived  at  headquarters  soon  after  the 
departure  of  Colonel  Reed,  received  a  colonel's  commission,  and  was  announced  as  the  aid  of  the 
commander-in-chief,  in  the  public  orders.  Colonel  Reed  joined  the  military  family  of  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  at  New  York,  the  following  year;  but  Harrison,  who  possessed  the  entire  confi 
dence  of  Washington,  served  as  his  secretary  during  a  larger  portion  of  the  war. 


736  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

men  and  civilians,  when  both  Lynch  and  Harrison,  and  Judge 
Wales,  of  Connecticut,  declared  that  they  would  be  willing  to  see 
Boston  burnt.  General  Lee,  who  was  present,  asserted  that  it 
could  not  be  done,  unless  they  should  send  in  men  with  bundles  of 
straw  to  set  it  on  fire. 

Such  was  Lee's  expressed  opinion  in  the  council  of  war,  and  it 
was  determined  that  an  attack  upon  the  enemy  "  was  not  practica 
ble  at  the  present  time."  Whereupon  Washington,  among  other 
queries,  proposed  the  following  to  the  committee  of  Congress: 
"The  general  wishes  to  know  how  far  it  may  be  deemed  proper 
and  advisable  to  avail  himself  of  the  season  to  destroy  the  troops 
who  propose  to  winter  in  Boston,  by  a  bombardment  (when  the 
harbor  is  blocked  up),  or,  in  other  words,  whether  the  loss  of  the 
town,  and  the  property  therein,  are  so  to  be  considered,  as  that  an 
attack  upon  the  troops  there  should  be  avoided,  when  it  evidently 
appears  that  the  town  must,  of  consequence,  be  destroyed."*  This 
question  was  deemed  by  the  committee  of  too  much  importance  to 
be  determined  by  them.  They  referred  it  to  Congress,  and  that 
body,  after  debating  the  report  of  the  committee,  from  time  to 
time,  from  the  second  of  November,  agreed  to  it  on  the  twenty- 
second  of  December,  and  "Resolved,  That  if  General  Washington 
and  his  council  of  war  should  be  of  opinion,  that  a  successful 
attack  may  be  made  on  the  troops  in  Boston,  he  do  it  in  any 
manner  he  may  think  expedient,  notwithstanding  the  town 
and  property  in  it  may  thereby  be  destroyed.""!*  In  the  letter 
transmitting  this  resolution  to  Washington,  President  Hancock 
wrote,  in  a  spirit  of  noble  patriotism :  "  You  will  notice  the  last 
resolution  relating  to  an  attack  upon  Boston.  This  passed  after  a 
most  serious  debate  in  a  committee  of  the  whole  house,  and  the 
execution  was  referred  to  you.  May  God  crown  your  attempt  with 
success,  though  individually  I  may  be  the  greatest  sufferer."! 

The  appearance  of  Doctor  Franklin  in  the  camp  at  Cambridge 
produced  a  great  sensation.  All  classes  of  the  inhabitants  had  the 

*  Life  and  Correspondence  of  President  Reed,  i.,  122. 

t  Journals  of  Congress,  i.,  281. 

\  Sparks's  Correspondence  of  the  Revolution,  i.,  100. 


jE/r.  43.]  FRANKLIN  AT  CAMBRIDGE.  737 

most  profound  respect  for  his  character,  as  the  faithful  agent,  in 
England,  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  colony,  and  as  a  statesman, 
patriot,  and  sage.  They  flocked  in  from  the  surrounding  country 
to  see  the  great  man  whom  they  revered ;  and  early  campaigning 
recollections  were  awakened  in  the  mind  of  Washington  by  his 
presence,  for  he  remembered  seeing  Franklin  in  the  camp  of  Brad- 
dock  in  western  Pennsylvania,  twenty  years  before,  giving  his 
judicious  counsels  to  that  proud  and  unfortunate  general.  The 
officers  listened  to  the  philosopher  with  profound  deference ;  and 
men  and  women  of  every  degree  eagerly  sought  opportunities  to 
see  his  face  and  hear  his  voice.  Fifty  years  before,  he  had  left 
Boston  as  a  runaway  apprentice ;  now  he  was  the  representative 
of  a  national  council,  clothed  with  its  deliberative  powers,  in  a  mili 
tary  camp  before  the  city  of  his  birth,  bearing  the  accumulated 
honors  of  profound  statesmanship  and  scientific  renown;  and  by 
the  voice  of  two  hemispheres,  he  was  an  acknowledged  leader  in 
the  great  march  of  human  advancement. 

While  he  was  at  Cambridge,  the  Massachusetts  assembly  paid 
Franklin  the  balance  of  salary  due  to  him  as  agent  of  the  colony  in 
England.  It  amounted  to  the  sum  of  more  than  nine  thousand 
dollars,  the  late  Governor  Hutchinson  having  refused  to  sign  the 
bills  passed  annually  by  the  colonial  assembly,  ordering  the  pay 
ment  of  his  salary.  Franklin  improved  the  opportunity  to  dis 
charge  the  duties  of  a  sacred  trust  reposed  in  him,  by  an  association 
in  England  called  the  Constitutional  Society.  That  association  of 
liberal  men  had  called  the  Lexington  skirmish  a  " murder"  on  the 
part  of  the  ministerial  troops,  and  raised  five  hundred  dollars,  "  to 
be  applied  to  the  relief  of  the  widows,  orphans,  and  aged  parents 
of  their  beloved  American  fellow-subjects,  who  had  preferred  death 
to  slavery."*  This  sum  was  sent  to  Doctor  Franklin  for  proper 

*  This  was  an  offset  against  subscriptions  then  being  raised  in  England  for  the  widows  and 
orphans  of  die  British  soldiers  Avho  had  perished  on  the  same  day.  The  Constitutional  Society  was 
supposed  to  be  revolutionary  in  its  character.  One  of  its  most  active  members  was  the  celebrated 
John  Home  Tooke,  a  vigorous  writer,  and  industrious  politician.  In  the  autumn  of  1775,  he  was 
prosecuted  for  "a  libel  upon  the  king's  troops  in  America,"  contained  in  an  advertisement  of  the 
society.  He  was  sentenced  to  imprisonment  one  year,  to  pay  a  fine  of  one  thousand  dollars,  and  to 
give  security  for  his  good  conduct  for  three  years.  Out  of  the  circumstances  of  his  imprisonment 

47 


738  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

distribution ;  and  he  took  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  Cambridge  to 
place  it  in  judicious  hands  for  the  purpose.  Soon  after  this,  he 
left  for  Philadelphia,  with  his  colleagues,  and  on  the  second  of 
November,  the  committee  submitted  their  report  to  that  body. 

The  consideration  of  the  report  was  postponed  until  Saturday, 
the  fourth,  when  a  series  of  resolutions,  concerning  the  reorganiza 
tion  and  supplying  of  a  new  army,  was  adopted.  It  was  first 
resolved  that  the  "  new  army  to  lie  before  Boston,"  should  consist 
of  twenty  thousand  three  hundred  and  seventy-two  men,  officers 
included;  and  then  resolutions  were  voted,  for  determining  the 
division  of  the  army  into  regiments  and  companies,  and  the  pay 
and  rations  of  the  officers  and  soldiers;  recommending  the  civil 
authorities  in  the  several  colonies  to  keep  gunsmiths  at  work  man 
ufacturing  firearms;  providing  for  the  retention  of  good  muskets 
belonging  to  soldiers  leaving  the  service ;  for  clothing  the  army ; 
bounty  for  blankets;  for  the  supply  of  provisions  by  the  com 
missary-general;  to  give  preference  in  the  new  organization  to 
officers  in  service  who  should  be  willing  to  remain,  and  fixing  the 
time  of  all  enlistment  at  one  year  from  the  last  day  of  December, 
1775 ;  recommending  the  legislatures  of  New  England  to  empower 
the  commander-in-chief  to  impress  horses,  carriages,  vessels,  and 
other  needful  things  for  the  use  of  the  army ;  for  recruiting  from  the 
army  then  in  the  field ;  recommending  the  assemblies  and  conven 
tions  to  pass  laws  for  the  infliction  of  certain  punishments  in  the 
army;  and  fixing  rewards  for  those  who  should  apprehend  de 
serters. 

On  Monday,  the  sixth,  other  articles  in  the  report  of  the  com 
mittee  were  agreed  to,  and  the  whole  were  then  referred  to  Secre 
tary  Thomson  to  digest.  This  digest  was  laid  before  the  Congress 
on  the  following  day,  when  fourteen  new  rules  and  regulations  for 
the  army  were  added  to  those  adopted  on  the  thirtieth  of  June. 

arose  his  letter  to  Counsellor  Dunning,  which  formed  the  basis  of  Home  Tooke's  subsequent  philo 
logical  work,  entitled  "  The  Diversions  of  Purley,"  published  in  1780. 


JET.  43.1  BEGINNING  OF  A  NAVY.  739 


CHAPTER   LXII. 


NAVAL      PREPARATIONS VEXATIONS     AND     DIFFICULTIES CAPTAIN     MANLY  S 

PRIZE PILLAGE    AT     ST.    JOHN WASHINGTON'S     NOBLE    CONDUCT PROCEED 
INGS  OF  CONGRESS  ON  NAVAL  AFFAIRS — ;THE  BRITISH  WORKS   STRENGTHENED 

DESECRATION     OF    CHURCHES HOWE'S     PROCLAMATIONS WASHINGTON'S     RE 
TALIATORY  MEASURES ENLISTMENT  EFFORTS PLANS  OF  QUINCY  AND  M'PHER- 

SON CHARACTER    OF    THE    LATTER ENGINEERS     NEEDED HENRY    KNOX    AP 
POINTED     TO     THE    COMMAND    OF    THE    ARTILLERY HIS    EXPEDITION    TO    LAKE 

CHAMPLAIN HIS  RETURN  TO  CAMP  WITH  ARTILLERY  AND  ORDNANCE  STORES. 

THE  mischiefs  effected  and  threatened  by  British  cruisers  on  the 
New  England  coasts,  called  forth  efforts  to  confront  them.  The 
colonies  had  not  the  smallest  germ  of  a  navy  at  the  dawn  of  1775, 
and  its  merchant  marine  were  few  in  number  and  small  in  tonnage. 
But  necessity,  the  mother  of  invention,  soon  transformed  many 
little  merchantrvessels  of  Marblehead  and  other  seaports,  into 
spirited  war-craft,  manned  by  resolute  men,  and  seeking,  not  wait 
ing,  for  the  stately  prows  of  the  navy  of  Great  Britain  then  cruising 
in  American  waters. 

We  have  already  observed  the  gallantry  and  success  of  the 
young  men  of  Machias,  in  May.  In  June,  the  assembly  of  Rhode 
Island  fitted  out  two  small  armed  vessels  to  protect  Narraganset 
bay  and  the  neighboring  coast,  and  placed  them  under  the  com 
mand  of  Captain  Whipple,  the  leader  of  the  party  who  destroyed 
the  Gaspe,  in  those  waters,  in  1772.  At  about  the  same  time, 
Connecticut  fitted  out  one  or  two  small  vessels  in  the  Thames,  to 
cruise  along  the  coast  of  that  colony,  from  Fairfield  to  Stonington ; 
and  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  June,  the  provincial  Congress  of  Massa 
chusetts  resolved  to  provide  six  armed  vessels  for  the  public  service. 
But  as  late  as  the  twelfth  of  October,  according  to  a  letter  of 


740  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

"Washington  to  the  president  of  Congress,  none  of  these  vessels  had 
been  got  in  readiness  for  service.  The  authorities  of  Pennsylvania, 
Maryland,  Virginia,  and  South  Carolina,  took  similar  steps ;  and 
finally,  the  delegates  from  Rhode  Island,  under  instructions  from 
the  assembly  of  that  province,  called  the  attention  of  the  continen 
tal  Congress  to  the  subject  of  a  navy. 

Perceiving  the  absolute  necessity  of  armed  vessels  in  his  opera 
tions  against  the  enemy  in  Boston,  whose  supplies  all  came  by 
water,  Washington  had,  at  the  close  of  summer,  without  any 
instructions  from  Congress,  taken  the  responsibility  under  his  gen 
eral  delegated  powers,  of  preparing  some  small  ones  to  annoy  the 
enemy  and  intercept  his  supplies.  He  appointed  agents  in  Salem, 
Marblehead,  Beverly,  and  Plymouth,  to  superintend  their  construc 
tion,  and  to  furnish  supplies ;  and,  on  the  second  of  September,  he 
commissioned  Captain  Broughton,  of  Marblehead,  a  commandant  in 
the  navy  yet  to  be  created.  This  was  the  first  commission  of  the 
kind  that  was  issued.  The  work  went  vigorously  on,  and  before 
the  close  of  October,  six  vessels  of  small  size  had  been  armed  and 
manned  and  sent  to  cruise  as  privateers  within  the  capes  of  Massa 
chusetts  Bay.*  He  had  also  launched,  armed,  and  manned,  two 
strong  floating-batteries  in  the  Charles  river. 

The  first  enterprises  of  the  little  navy  fitted  out  by  Washington 
were  not  very  fruitful.  Being  commander-in-chief  of  the  army 
only,  he  was  very  cautious  not  to  assume  doubtful  powers,  and  his 
instructions  to  the  naval  commanders  were  drawn  with  great  cau 
tion  and  precision.  He  ordered  them  to  "take  command  of  a 
detachment  of  the  army,  with  which  they  were  to  proceed  on 
board,  cruise  against  such  vessels  as  were  found  in  the  service  of 
the  enemy,  and  seize  all  such  as  were  laden  with  soldiers,  arms, 
ammunition,  or  provisions."  Some  of  the  officers,  lacking  all  mili 
tary  experience,  proved  incompetent.  The  seamen  were  often 
mutinous ;  and  a  disregard  of  instructions  sometimes  led  to  trouble. 


*  The  names  of  five  of  these  vessels  have  been  preserved.  These  were  Hancock,  Harrison,  Lee, 
Washington,  and  Lynch.  The  six  commanders  were,  Boughton,  Selman,  Manly,  Martindale,  Coit, 
and  Adams. 


JET.  43.]  THE   PEIVATEERSMEN.  741 

On  the  whole,  the  difficulties  that  appeared  during  the  first  few 
weeks  after  privateers  were  fitted  out,  would  have  discouraged 
most  men ;  but  Washington,  full  of  faith  and  patience,  persevered, 
for  his  sagacity  perceived  the  value  of  even  a  weak  navy.  To  the 
capture  of  British  vessels  he  felt  compelled  to  look  for  his  most 
abundant  immediate  supplies  of  arms  and  ammunition.  He  did 
not  complain,  but  he  occasionally  gave  expression  to  his  feelings. 
To  Colonel  Eeed,  on  the  twentieth  of  November,  he  said :  "Our 
privateersmen  go  on  at  the  old  rate,  mutinying  if  they  can  not 
do  as  they  please."  And  in  a  letter  to  the  president  of  Congress, 
written  on  the  fourth  of  December,  he  said :  "  The  plague,  trouble, 
and  vexation,  I  have  had  with  the  crews  of  all  the  armed  vessels, 
are  inexpressible.  I  do  believe  there  is  not  on  earth  a  more  disor 
derly  set.  Every  time  they  come  into  port  we  hear  of  nothing  but 
mutinous  complaints." 

The  crew  of  the  armed  schooner  Lee,  under  Captain  John  Manly 
(the  commodore  of  Washington's  fleet),  appear  to  have  been  an 
exception.  They  were  orderly  and  brave,  and  the  services  of  that 
gallant  officer,  during  the  autumn  of  1775,  were  duly  appreciated 
by  the  commander-in-chief.  On  the  twenty-ninth  of  November, 
Manly  captured  a  valuable  store-ship,  from  England,  bound  for  Bos 
ton,  which  contained  a  large  brass  mortar,  several  pieces  of  brass 
cannon,  two  thousand  muskets,  one  hundred  thousand  flints,  thirty 
thousand  round-shot,  thirty  tons  of  musket-shot,  eleven  mortar-beds, 
and  every  kind  of  implement  for  artillery  and  intrenching  service. 
This  was  a  most  seasonable  prize,  for  the  spoils  were  precisely  what 
were  greatly  needed  in  camp.  They  were  landed  at  Cape  Ann,  and 
Washington  sent  four  companies  to  receive  them,  and  bear  them 
to  headquarters.  There  was  great  joy  in  the  camp  on  their  arrival. 
"  To  crown  the  glorious  scene,"  wrote  Colonel  Moylan  to  Colonel 
Reed,*  "  there  intervened  one  truly  ludicrous,  which  was  OLD  PUT 
[General  Putnam]  mounted  on  the  large  mortar,  which  was  fixed 
in  its  bed  for  the  occasion,  with  a  bottle  of  rum  in  his  hand,  stand 
ing  parson  to  christen,  while  Godfather  Mifflin  gave  it  the  name 

*  December  5,  1775. 


742  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775 

of  Congress.  The  huzzas  on  the  occasion,  I  dare  say,  were  heard 
through  all  the  territories  of  our  most  gracious  sovereign  in  this 
province." 

A  circumstance  connected  with  these  early  naval  operations 
occurred  in  November,  and  illustrates  the  character  of  Washington 
in  the  most  pleasing  colors.  The  continental  Congress  had  been 
informed  that  two  brigan tines  had  sailed  from  England  for  the  St. 
Lawrence  river,  laden  with  arms  and  ammunition,  and  without 
convoy.  They  directed  Washington  to  despatch  two  armed  vessels 
to  the  St.  Lawrence,  to  intercept  these  brigantines.  Captains 
Broughton  and  Selman  were  accordingly  sent  by  the  command  er-in- 
chief.  They  cruised  for  a  while  in  the  gulf,  and  in  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  but  did  not  discover  the  objects  of  their  search.  Unwilling 
to  return  empty,  they  interpreted  the  spirit  of  their  instructions 
with  the  greatest  latitude,  and  without  warrant,  even  from  such 
interpretation,  they  made  a  descent  upon  the  island  of  St  John, 
broke  into  and  plundered  the  houses  of  the  governor  and  other 
persons,  and  brought  three  gentlemen  away  with  them,  as  prisoners. 
They  seized  plate,  carpets,  mirrors,  curtains,  table-linen,  wearing 
apparel,  and  everything  else  that  was  portable,  carried  them  on 
board  their  vessels,  and  returned  in  ignoble  triumph  to  Marblehead. 
They  took  their  prisoners  immediately  to  headquarters,  in  expecta 
tion  of  applause ;  but  they  received,  instead,  a  severe  reprimand 
from  the  commander-in-chief,  who  immediately  released  the  cap 
tives,  treated  them  with  the  utmost  kindness,  ordered  a  restitution 
of  the  plunder,  and,  in  due  time,  sent  the  victims  of  this  ill-judged 
exploit,  back  to  their  distressed  families. 

One  of  the  prisoners  was  Mr.  Callbeck,  president  of  the  council 
of  St.  John,  and  acting-governor  of  the  island.  His  gratitude  to 
Washington  for  his  kindness,  was  expressed  in  a  letter  to  the  gen 
eral,  just  previous  to  the  governor's  departure.  "I  should  ill  de 
serve  the  generous  treatment,"  he  said,  "  which  your  excellency  has 
been  pleased  to  show  me,  had  I  not  'gratitude  to  acknowledge  so 
great  a  favor.  I  can  not  ascribe  any  part  of  it  to  my  own  merit, 
but  must  impute  the  whole  to  the  philanthropy  and  humane  dis- 


D   te  occason,    .     are  say*  were     raf 
uf  our  most  gracious  sovereign  in  this 


inee  connected  with  these  early  naval  operations 
vember,  and  illustrates  the  character  of  Washington 
leasing  colors.  The  continental  Congress  had  been 
two  brigantines  had  sailed  from  England  for  the  St. 
r.  laden  with  arms  and  ammunition,  and  without 
•  »li|*,'vf-i  •'  Washington  fo  despatch  two  armed  vessels 


..r    .,p"ii   the  island  of  St  John, 
i  .•:;  :.<M'i  rjiM  houses  of   the  governor  and  other 
:ui  brought  three  gentlemen  away  with  them,  as  prisoners. 
-eizt-^    piato,  rarpetN  mirrors,  curtains,  table-linen,  wearing 
,  and  everything  else  that  was    portable,  carried  them  on 
i'i.eir  vessels,  and  vetunu-rd  in  ignoble  triumph  to  Marblehead. 
look  tiieir  prisoners  immediately  to  headquarters,  in  expecti- 
>t  applause;   but  they  received,  instead,  a  -severe  reprimand 
the   eoijimander-in-chiefj  who   immediately  released   the  cap- 
treated  them  with   ihe  utmost  kindness,  ordered  a"  restitution 
r  and,  in  due  lime,  sent  the  victims  of  this  ill-u-.le1. 


r.  Callbeck,  president  of  the 
or  of  the  island.     His  grat  ' 


MT.  43.]  DESECRATION  OF  CHURCHES.  745 

force  their  lines,  thrown  up  at  the  head  of  each  neck.  Without 
great  slaughter  on  our  side,  or  cowardice  on  theirs,  it  is  absolutely 
so.  We,  therefore,  can  do  no  more  than  keep  them  besieged, 
which  they  are,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  as  closely  as  any  troops 
upon  earth  can  be,  that  have  an  opening  to  the  sea.  Our  advanced 
works  and  theirs  are  within  muskei>shot.  We  daily  undergo  a 
cannonade,  which  has  done  no  injury  to  our  works,  and  very  little 
hurt  to  our  men.  These  insults  we  are  compelled  to  submit  to  for 
want  of  powder,  being  obliged,  except  now  and  then  giving  them  a 
shot,  to  reserve  what  we  have  for  closer  work  than  cannon-dis 
tance." 

During  October,  Howe  employed  six  hundred  men  in  making 
additional  fortifications  on  Boston  Neck.  At  the  south  end  of  the 
city,  several  houses  were  removed  to  make  room  for  military  works ; 
the  lines  on  the  Neck,  toward  Roxbury,  were  much  strengthened, 
and  redoubts  were  erected  upon  the  eminences  in  Boston  not 
already  crowned  with  fortifications.  The  enemy  also  laid  violent 
hands  upon  public  and  private  property  within  the  city,  and  no 
deference  was  paid  to  things  venerable  or  sacred.  The  old  South 
church,  where,  years  before,  the  sons  of  Liberty  assembled - 
"where,"  as  a  British  officer  at  the  time  wrote,  "sedition  had  been 
often  preached" — was  taken  possession  of  by  the  troops,  and  pre 
pared  for  a  riding-school  for  the  use  of  Burgoyne's  light  dragoons. 
It  was  stripped  of  its  seats  and  furniture ;  and  a  pew  that  had  be 
longed  to  a  beloved  deacon,  deceased,  handsomely  carved  and 
adorned  with  silk  furniture,  was  taken  away  and  converted  into  a 
hog-stye.  Another  "  meeting-house,"  called  the  North  church,  was 
entirely  demolished,  and  used  for  fuel. 

This  desecration  of  one  of  the  most  venerable  places  of  worship 
in  the  city,  shocked  the  religious  feelings  of  the  people  all  over  the 
country,  wherever  the  story  was  told,  and  made  the  roots  of  hatred 
to  imperial  rule  strike  deeper  down  into  the  public  heart.  This 
was  the  first  of  a  series  of  similar  outrages  committed  by  the 
British  during  the  war.  They  always  spared  churches  that  had 
been  consecrated  by  episcopal  rites ;  but  the  houses  of  worship  of 


746  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

all  dissenters,  to  whom  they  gave  the  general  name  of  presby- 
terians,  were  wantonly  profaned.  This  was  a  wicked  and  unwise 
policy,  and  always  widened  the  breach  which  patriots  on  both  sides 
of  the  Atlantic  desired  to  close.  "  When  Roman  virtue  and  patri 
otism  were  at  their  height,"  says  Doctor  Gordon,  when  referring  to 
these  outrages,  "  the  Roman  officers  would  not  allow  the  religion  or 
temples  of  the  persons  with  whom  they  fought,  to  be  insulted  and 
profaned.  They  were  more  politic  than  to  exasperate  men  into  a 
ferocious  courage  for  the  defence  of  their  altars." 

On  the  twenty-eighth  of  October,  Howe  issued  three  proclama 
tions,  which  created  much  indignation,  and  drew  from  Washington 
some  retaliatory  measures.  The  first  forbade  all  persons  leaving 
the  town  without  permission,  under  pain  of  military  execution  in 
the  event  of  their  arrest,  and  a  confiscation  of  their  property  if 
they  escaped.  The  second  prohibited  all  persons  who  were  per 
mitted  to  go,  carrying  with  them  more  than  twenty-five  dollars  in 
cash,  under  pain  of  forfeiture ;  and  the  third  ordered  all  the  inhab 
itants  within  the  town  to  associate  themselves  into  military  com 
panies,  to  be  commanded  by  officers  appointed  by  Howe. 

These  proclamations,  and  the  crimes  committed  on  the  New 
England  coasts  by  marauders,  and  on  the  shores  of  Virginian  waters 
by  Lord  Dunmore,  of  which  we  shall  hereafter  write,  greatly  in 
censed  Washington,  and  he  resolved  on  retaliatory  measures. 
Already  General  Sullivan  had  gone  to  Portsmouth,  to  assist  the 
inhabitants  in  fortifying  the  town  and  harbor,  and  he  ordered  him 
"  to  seize  upon  such  persons  as  held  commissions  from  the  crown, 
and  were  acting  as  open  and  avowed  enemies  to  their  country,  and 
hold  them  as  hostages  for  the  security  of  those  towns  which,"  he 
said,  "  our  ministerial  enemies  threaten  to  invade."  He  issued  simi 
lar  orders  to  William  Palfrey,  at  Portsmouth,  an  active  whig,  who 
afterward  became  an  aid  to  the  commander-in-chief,  paymaster- 
general  of  the  army,  and,  in  1780,  consul-general  of  the  United 
States  in  France.  In  his  letter  to  Mr.  Palfrey,  Washington  said : 
u  For  the  present  I  shall  avoid  giving  you  the  like  order  in  respect 
to  the  tones  in  Portsmouth ;  but  the  day  is  not  far  off,  when  they 


&T.  43.]  LUKEWARMNESS  OF  THE  TROOPS.  747 

will  meet  with  this  or  a  worse  fate,  if  there  is  not  a  reasonable 
reformation  in  their  conduct." 

To  Governor  Trumbull,  Washington  wrote  at  the  same  time,  and 
asked — "Would  it  not  be  prudent  to  seize  on  those  tories  who 
have  been,  are,  and  that  we  know  will  be,  active  against  us  ?  Why 
should  persons  who  are  preying  upon  the  vitals  of  their  country, 
be  suffered  to  stalk  at  large,  whilst  we  know  that  they  will 
do  us  every  mischief  in  their  power?"  He  made  similar  sug 
gestions  to  Governor  Cooke,  of  Rhode  Island ;  and  these  repub 
lican  magistrates  agreed  with  his  excellency,  in  opinion,  and  acted 
accordingly. 

Every  day  the  cares,  responsibilities,  and  duties  of  Washington 
increased,  and  every  day  he  appeared  to  receive  fresh  and  accumu 
lated  strength  of  mind  and  body,  to  bear  and  perform  them.  When 
the  committee  of  Congress  had  left  the  camp,  he  commenced  the 
most  untiring  efforts  to  reorganize  the  army  and  strengthen  his 
position,  according  to  the  plan  agreed  upon,  that  he  might  speedily 
attack  the  enemy  with  a  prospect  of  success,  or  at  least  to  sustain 
a  rigid  blockade  until  starvation  should  compel  him 'to  surrender. 
He  first  directed  that  all  officers  of  the  army,  who  proposed  to 
remain,  should  signify  their  intention  as  early  as  possible.  By  the 
thirty-first  of  October  sufficient  returns  had  come  in  to  enable  him 
to  form  an  estimate  of  the  number  who  would  continue  with  the 
army.  It  was  evident  that  full  one  half  intended  to  leave ;  and 
Washington  was  concerned  to  find,  that  many  of  these  men,  not 
content  to  abandon  the  army  themselves  at  this  critical  juncture, 
were  endeavoring  to  persuade  the  troops  under  them  to  do  likewise. 
He  was  advised  to  dismiss  them  at  once,  before  their  term  of  enlist 
ment  should  expire ;  but  he  regarded  such  a  measure  as  fraught 
with  danger  and  great  inconvenience.  It  was  a  very  critical  mo 
ment,  and  the  greatest  caution,  prudence,  forbearance,  and  fore 
sight,  were  necessary  to  prevent  a  complete  dissolution  of  the 
army. 

Washington,  at  this  time,  was  filled  with  great  anxiety,  and  in 
this  feeling  the  whole  country  participated.  Individual  minds  were 


748  WASHINGTON  :    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

busy  in  planning  schemes  to  aid  him.  On  the  third  of  November, 
he  received  quite  a  long  communication  from  Josiah  Quincy  (the 
father  of  the  fervent  patriot  already  mentioned,  whose  eyes  closed 
in  death  on  shipboard,  just  as  they  beheld  the  hills  of  his  native 
province,  on  his  return  from  England),  explaining  a  scheme  for  pre 
venting  the  passage  of  vessels  in  and  out  of  the  harbor  of  Boston. 
Mr.  Quincy  was  thoroughly  acquainted  with  every  island  and  ship- 
channel  in  the  harbor,  and  his  scheme  was  an  admirable  one.  He 
had  communicated  it  to  Franklin,  who  advised  him  to  lay  it  before 
Washington  in  detail.  It  required  too  many  cannon  and  too  much 
powder  to  be  then  adopted,  and  it  was  abandoned. 

At  about  the  same  time,  Captain  M'Pherson,  an  old  sea-com 
mander,  and  father  of  Montgomery's  aid  of  that  name,  who  was 
killed  at  Quebec,*  visited  the  camp  under  a  special  order  of  Con 
gress,  with  a  letter  to  Washington  from  that  body,  and  laid  before 
his  excellency  a  plan  for  the  total  destruction  of  the  British  fleet  in 
Boston  harbor.  Washington  examined  it,  perceived  its  absurdity, 
and  prevailed  upon  MTherson  to  communicate  his  plans  to  three 
gentlemen  of  the  artillery,  in  the  army,  well  versed  in  the  practice 
of  gunnery.  They  convinced  him,  says  Washington  to  the  presi 
dent  of  Congress,  "  that,  inasmuch  as  he  set  out  upon  wrong  prin 
ciples,  the  scheme  would  prove  abortive."  "  Unwilling,  however," 
he  continued,  "to  relinquish  his 'favorite  project  of  reducing  the 
naval  force  of  Great  Britain,  he  is  very  desirous  of  building  a 

*  John  Adams,  in  his  diary,  under  date  of  September  18th,  1775,  says:  "This  morning,  John 
M'Pherson,  Esq.,  came  to  my  lodgings  and  requested  to  speak  with  me  in  private.  He  is  the 
owner  of  a  very  handsome  country-seat,  about  five  miles  out  of  this  [Philadelphia]  city ;  is  the  father 
of  Mr.  M'Pherson,  an  aid-de-carnp  to  General  Schuyler.  He  has  been  a  captain  of  a  privateer,  and 
made  a  fortune  in  that  way,  the  last  war;  is  reputed  to  be  well  skilled  in  naval  affairs.  He  proposes 
great  things ;  is  sanguine,  confident,  positive,  that  he  can  take  or  burn  every  man-of-war  in  America. 
It  is  a  secret,  he  says,  but  he  will  communicate  it  to  any  one  member  of  Congress,  upon  condition 
that  it  be  not  divulged  during  his  life,  nor  after  his  death,  but  for  the  service  of  his  country.  He 
says,  that  it  is  as  certain  as  that  he  shall  die,  that  he  can  burn  any  ship."  A  week  afterward  he 
wrote :  "  Rode  out  of  town,  and  dined  with  Mr.  M'Pherson.  He  has  the  most  elegant  seat  in 
Pennsylvania,  a  clever  Scotch  wife,  and  two  pretty  daughters.  His  seat  is  on  the  banks  of  the 
Schuylkill.  He  has  been  nine  times  wounded  in  battle;  an  old  sea-commander;  made  a  fortune  by 
privateering ;  one  arm  twice  shot  off,  shot  through  the  leg,  &c.  He  renews  his  proposals  for  taking 
or  burning  ships."  Soon  after  this,  Mr.  M'Pherson  communicated  with  the  Congress  on  the  sub 
ject,  and,  on  the  nineteenth  of  October,  that  body  resolved,  "  That  Captain  M'Pherson  be  requested 
immediately  to  repair  to  the  camp,  at  Cambridge,  and  confer  with  General  Washington,  on  the  sub 
ject  contained  in  his  letter  to  Congress." — Journals,  i.,  207. 


JST.  43.]  KNOX,  COMMANDER  OF  THE  ARTILLERY.  749 

number  of  row-galleys  for  this  purpose."  As  Washington  had  no 
authority  in  the  matter,  he  referred  M'Pherson  to  the  Congress. 
On  the  same  day  he  wrote  to  Colonel  Keed,  in  Philadelphia,  and 
said :  "  I  have  been  happy  enough  to  convince  Captain  M'Pherson, 
as  he  says,  of  the  propriety  of  returning  to  Congress — he  sets  out 
this  day,  and  I  am  happy  in  his  having  an  opportunity  of  laying 
before  them  a  scheme  for  the  destruction  of  the  naval  force  of 
Great  Britain."  Washington  had  evidently  been  annoyed  by  the 
persistent  captain,  for  the  words  that  he  emphasized  in  his  letter, 
express  intentional  irony.  , 

Another  source  of  Washington's  anxiety,  at  that  time,  was  the 
want  of  skilful  engineers.  "The  commissary-general*  can  inform 
you,"  he  wrote  to  Governor  Trumbull,  "  how  exceedingly  deficient 
the  army  is  of  gentlemen  skilled  in  that  branch  of  business,  and 
that  most  of  the  works  which  have  been  thrown  up  for  the  defence 
of  our  several  encampments,  have  been  planned  by  a  few  of  the 
principal  officers  of  this  army,  assisted  by  Mr.  Knox,  a  gentleman 
of  Worcester."  Colonel  Gridley,  the  chief-engineer,  had  been  com 
missioned  by  the  Congress  in  September,  to  take  command  of  the 
artillery  of  the  continental  army;  but  his  qualifications  for  that 
important  post  appeared  so  inadequate,  on  account  of  his  age,  that 
early  in  November,  a  council  of  officers  expressed  a  unanimous 
opinion  that  the  command  should  no  longer  continue  in  him. 
Washington  communicated  this  opinion  to  the  Congress,  and  at  the 
same  time  he  nominated  Knox  to  fill  Gridley's  place.  He  also  said, 
that  it  was  indispensably  necessary  that  the  artillery  regiment  should 
consist  of  two  lieutenant-colonels,  two  majors,  and  twelve  com 
panies.  That  nomination  and  these  suggestions  were  immediately 
acted  upon  by  the  Congress,  and,  on  the  nineteenth  of  November, 
Henry  Knox  was  commissioned  a  colonel,  and  appointed  to  the 
command  of  the  artillery. 

Knox's  merits  entitled  him  to  the  honor.  He  had  left  the  pro 
fession  of  a  bookseller  for  that  of  a  soldier ;  had  fought  gallantly 
on  Bunker's  hill,  and  having  an  aptness  for  the  science  of  fortifica- 

*  Joseph  Trumbull,  a  son  of  Governor  Trumbull. 


750  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

tions,  about  which  he  had  read  much,  he  had  been  very  useful  in 
planning  some  of  the  works  already  constructed  around  Boston. 
And  now,  when  his  services  were  most  needed,  he  came  forward  as 
a  volunteer,  and  offered  to  proceed  to  Lake  Champlain,  to  procure 
supplies  of  artillery  and  ordnance  stores,  with  which  to  carry  on 
the  siege  of  Boston.  Before  the  arrival  of  his  commission  from 
Congress,  he  was  on  his  way  toward  the  frontier.  He  first  exam 
ined  into  the  state  of  the  artillery  and  stores  in  camp,  and  then 
proceeded  on  his  errand,  under  instructions  from  Washington,  issued 
on  the  sixteenth  of  November,  which  directed  him  to  proceed  to 
New  York,  and  apply  to  the  president  of  the  provincial  Congress 
for  supplies.  After  performing  that  duty  he  was  to  go  to  the  head 
quarters  of  General  Schuyler,  and,  by  the  assistance  of  that  officer, 
to  procure  what  was  necessary  from  Ticonderoga,  Crown  Point,  St. 
John,  and  Quebec,  if  the  latter  place  should  be  in  possession  of  the 
Americans.  He  bore  a  letter  from  Washington  to  General  Schuy 
ler,  requesting  that  officer  to  lend  Knox  every  assistance  in  his 
power. 

With  these  instructions,  and  a  thousand  dollars  to  pay  his  ex 
penses,  the  brave  Knox  set  out  for  New  York.  He  was  then 
twenty-five  years  of  age,  with  a  fine  constitution,  an  athletic  frame, 
and  powers  of  endurance  of  a  high  order.  Having  despatched  his 
business  with  the  provincial  Congress  at  New  York,  he  ascended 
the  Hudson  in  a  sloop,  as  far  as  Poughkeepsie,  where  further 
progress  was  forbidden  by  strong  ice.  He  proceeded  by  land,  and 
reached  Ticonderoga  on  the  twenty-sixth,  where  he  found  General 
Schuyler,  suffering  very  much  from  a  complication  of  diseases. 

After  extraordinary  perseverance,  labor,  and  hardships,  Colonel 
Knox  had  collected  a  large  quantity  of  artillery  and  ordnance 
stores  at  the  head  of  Lake  George  on  the  seventeenth  of  Decem 
ber,  and  was  prepared  to  transport  them  across  the  country  on 
sledges,  the  ground  being  deeply  covered  with  snow.  "It  is  not 
easy  to  conceive,"  he  said,  in  a  letter  to  Washington  written  on 
that  day,  "  the  difficulties  we  have  had  in  getting  them  over  the 
lake,  owing  to  the  advanced  season  of  the  year  and  contrary  winds ; 


JEf.  43.]  IMPORTANT  SPOILS  OF  VICTORY.  751 

three  days  ago  it  was  very  uncertain  whether  we  could  have  gotten 
them  over  until  next  spring ;  but  now,  please  God,  they  shall  go." 
He  placed  the  spoils  on  forty-two  sleds,  drawn  by  eighty  oxen, 
crossed  the  Hudson  a  little  above  Fort  Edward,  and  went  by  the 
way  of  Fort  Miller  and  Saratoga  to  Albany.  There  he  again 
crossed  the  river  on  the  ice,  proceeded  to  Kinderhook,  and  then 
turning  eastward,  went  through  Great  Barrington  and  Springfield, 
and  so  on  to  Cambridge,  where  he  arrived  in  January,  with  eight 
brass  mortars,  six  iron  mortars,  two  iron  howitzers,  thirteen  brass 
cannon,  twenty-six  iron  cannon,  two  thousand  three  hundred  pounds 
of  lead,  and  a  barrel  of  flints.  This  arduous  service  had  been 
performed  with  great  celerity,  considering  the  inclemency  and 
severity  of  the  season,  for  the  winter  set  in  with  extreme  cold  on 
the  first  of  December.  It  was  a  service  of  the  greatest  importance, 
for  the  heavy  ordnance,  the  artillery,  and  other  implements  of  war 
thus  furnished,  were  much  needed  in  carrying  on  the  siege  of  Boston. 
On  his  arrival,  Colonel  Knox  took  command  of  the  artillery ;  and 
he  remained  at  the  head  of  that  branch  of  the  military  service 
until  the  close  of  the  war. 


752  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 


CHAPTER   LXIII. 

WASHINGTON'S  TRIALS  —  INFLUENCES  OPERATING  UPON  THE  SOLDIERY — DEVEL 
OPMENT  OF  WASHINGTON'S  EXCELLENCES  —  ESTIMATE  OF  HIS  DIFFICULTIES  — 

SECTIONAL    JEALOUSIES SLOW  ENLISTMENTS THE    NEW    ENGLAND  TROOPS 

GREENE'S  APOLOGY — BAD  CONDUCT  OF  THE  CONNECTICUT  TROOPS  —  THE  MILI 
TIA  TO  BE  SUMMONED TRUMBULL'S  LETTER HOSTILE  MOVEMENTS  OF  THE 

ENEMY BRITISH  REPULSED NEW  FORTIFICATIONS  CAST  UP PROMPT  ACTION 

OF  THE  MILITIA BRIGHTER  PROSPECTS  IN  THE  CAMP FEARS  OF  THE  BRITISH 

—  WASHINGTON'S  ATTENTION  TO  DOMESTIC  AFFAIRS  —  HIS  MANAGER  AT  MOUNT 
VERNON MRS.  WASHINGTON'S  DEPARTURE  FOR  CAMP HER  TARRY  IN  PHILA 
DELPHIA ARRIVAL  AT  CAMP PLEASANT  CHRISTMAS  HOLYDAYS  THERE. 

PERHAPS  at  no  time  during  the  war  for  independence  was  the 
judgment,  firmness,  wisdom,  patience,  and  self-reliance  of  Washing 
ton  more  thoroughly  tried  and  tested,  than  during  the  last  six 
weeks  of  the  year  1775;  and  at  no  time  were  these  qualities  more 
signally  triumphant  in  sustaining  him  in  the  midst  of  great  labors 
and  trials. 

War  had  actually  begun.  Blood  had  flowed;  and  the  love  of 
freedom  and  the  vengeance  of  lustful  power  were  in  rampant  strife. 
A  people,  free  and  loyal,  had  been  driven  by  systematic  and  long- 
sustained  assaults  upon  their  liberties  and  franchises,  into  rebellion 
to  the  sovereign  power  of  the  realm,  to  which  they  had  ever  been 
proud  of  yielding  fealty.  They  were  accustomed  to  the  arts  and 
blessings  of  peace,  and  had  enjoyed  the  sweets  of  prosperity  and 
repose.  To  them  a  camp  was  a  repulsive  necessity,  and  not  a 
delightful  choice.  They  had  been  quickly  summoned  to  resist 
oppression  by  physical  force ;  and  their  gathering  in  battle  order 
had  been  like  the  impulsive  motion  of  an  arm  uplifted  for  imme 
diate  defence.  They  warded  the  malicious  blow  aimed  at  their 
dearest  rights,  taught  the  foe  circumspection  and  dread,  and  became, 


JET.  43.]  HOME  AND  THE  CAMP.  753 

in  a  little  while,  only  simple  jailors  of  armed  mercenaries,  chafing 
within  prison-bars  wrought  of  prudence  and  fear.  The  enthusiasm 
that  called  them  from  the  workshops  and  the  field,  was  born  of  a 
noble  patriotism,  and  it  glowed  long  after  the  immediate  causes  of 
its  nativity  had  passed  away. 

But  there  were  other  strong  impulses  at  work.  The  cares  and 
necessities  of  social  and  domestic  life ;  the  delights  of  home  and 
the  pleasures  of  security  and  repose ;  the  calls  of  love  and  duty, 
to  the  plough  and  the  sickle,  the  anvil  and  the  plane ;  in  a  word, 
everything  pertaining  to  industrial  pursuits  and  domestic  happiness, 
pleaded  eloquently  for  the  soldier  to  leave  the  tent  for  his  own 
roof-tree  —  the  camp  for  his  own  cultivated  acres.  All  summer 
long  he  had  been  absent  from  his  home,  and  many  a  field  lay 
fallow  because  of  a  lack  of  laborers.  Material  interests  of  every 
kind  were  suffering;  and  as  men  all  unskilled  in  philosophy,  juris 
prudence,  and  the  teachings  of  long-past  experience  chronicled  in 
history,  gazed  into  the  political  heavens,  they  saw  little  else  than 
gathering  clouds,  that  whispered  of  wo  to  the  land,  in  mutterings 
of  suppressed  thunder. 

From  over  the  sea  came  menaces  to  awe  and  fleets  to  subjugate. 
The  civil  power  at  home  was  not  yet  developed,  and  was  but  little 
understood,  while  that  of  the  imperial  legislature  which  they  had 
defied  was  well  defined  and  formidable.  The  confederation  just 
formed  was  feeble  because  its  chief  element  of  cohesion  was  imme 
diate  danger.  Sectional  interests  and  individual  opinions  were 
producing  discords  everywhere ;  and  the  whole  sea  of  public  life, 
over  which  hung  the  mists  of  uncertainty,  was  foaming  with  turbu 
lence. 

No  wonder,  then,  that  men  accustomed  from  infancy  to  almost 
unlimited  freedom,  should  have  been  impatient  of  restraint;  no 
wonder  that  the  enthusiasm  of  men  filled  with  the  vigorous  life  of 
the  new  world,  should  have  felt  smothered  by  inaction ;  no  wonder 
that  the  delights  of  home,  and  the  necessities  of  common  life  should 
have  powerfully  wooed  them  from  the  camp,  and  made  them  indif 
ferent  to  the  verdict  of  posterity  concerning  their  patriotism. 

48 


754  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [l?75. 

They  were  men  possessed  of  all  the  weaknesses  of  our  common 
humanity,  and  subject  to  its  sympathetic  and  demonstrative  laws; 
and  we,  standing  upon  the  rock  of  a  well-consolidated  and  homo 
geneous  government,  with  the  blue  sky  of  peace  bending  over  us, 
and  the  sunlight  of  freedom  illuminating  all  things  within  the 
bounds  of  the  horizon,  can  not  justly  measure  the  patriotism  of 
men  in  that  hour  of  doubt,  instability,  and  gloom.  We  should  be 
modest  and  lenient  in  our  expressions  of  opinions  concerning  them, 
and  be  more  ready  to  pity  than  to  blame.  Yet  they  were  not  all 
blameless. 

In  proportion  as  we  appreciate  the  difficulties  and  dangers  of 
those  times,  does  the  noble  character  of  Washington  unfold  in 
bolder  relief  before  the  vision.  He  was  at  the  head  of  a  hetero 
geneous  army,  then  the  centre  of  all  hope,  and  the  real  focus  of  all 
present  power.  To  Washington  all  eyes  were  imploringly  or  hope 
fully  turned.  Upon  him  was  laid  the  task  and  responsibility  of 
thinking  rightly  and  acting  wisely  for  the  nation  just  struggling 
into  infantile  life.  The  continental  Congress,  the  provincial  assem 
blies,  the  committees  of  safety,  the  military  and  naval  officers,  and 
individuals  all  over  the  land,  eager  for  the  triumph  of  right,  turned 
to  him  for  advice  and  direction.  At  the  same  time  the  care  of  a 
fragile  army,  ready  to  fall  asunder  at  a  touch,  and  yet  an  army 
regarded  as  the  depository  of  the  hopes  of  the  nation,  required  his 
sleepless  vigilance  and  unremitting  attention.  Then  it  was  that 
the  greatness  of  Washington  was  made  manifest,  that  the  idea  of 
his  reliability  blossomed  into  a  universal  sentiment,  and  a  belief  in 
his  wonderful  fitness  for.  the  duties  of  a  supreme  leader,  became  an 
integral  of  the  creed  of  the  people,  which  was  never  rejected.  An 
innate  belief  in  his  inspiration,  took  the  form  of  unquestioning 
confidence. 

"  In  our  view,"  says  a  late  writer,  "  no  period  of  his  life  is  more 
affecting  than  the  early  months  of  his  command,  when  his  prudence 
was  sneered  at  by  the  ambitious,  his  military  capacity  distrusted 
even  by  his  most  intimate  friends,  and  his  '  masterly  inactivity' 
misinterpreted  by  those  who  awaited  his  signal  for  action.  The 


#h'.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  TRIALS.  75,5 

calm  remonstrance,  the  inward  grief,  the  exalted  magnanimity, 
which  his  letters  breathe  at  this  crisis,  reveal  a  heroism  of  soul  not 
surpassed  in  any«subsequent  achievement.  No  man  ever  illustrated 
more  nobly  the  profound  truths  of  Milton's  sentiment,  (  They  also 
serve  who  only  stand  and  wait.'  His  was  not  simply  the  reticence 
of  a  soul  eager  for  enterprise,  the  endurance  of  a  forced  passivity, 
with  vast  peril  and  glorious  possibilities,  the  spur  of  necessity,  the 
thirst  for  glory,  and  the  readiness  for  sacrifice  stirring  every  pulse 
and  bracing  every  nerve ;  but  it  was  his  part  to  '  stand  and  wait'  in 
the  midst  of  the  gravest  perplexities,  in  the  face  of  an  expectant 
multitude,  with  a  knowledge  of  circumstances  that  justified  the 
'hope  delayed,'  and  without  the  sympathy  which  alleviates  the 
pain  of  'hope  deferred' — to  'stand  and  wait'  before  the  half- 
averted  eye  of  the  loyal,  the  gibes  of  a  powerful  enemy,  the 
insinuations  of  factious  comrades — with  only  conscious  rectitude 
and  trust  in  Heaven  for  support.  How,  in  his  official  correspond 
ence,  did  Washington  hush  the  cry  of  a  wounded  spirit;  how 
plaintively  it  half  escapes  in  the  letter  of  friendship ;  and  how 
singly  does  he  keep  his  gaze  on  the  great  cause,  and  dash  aside  the 
promptings  of  self-love,  in  the  large  cares  and  impersonal  interests 
of  a  country  not  yet  sensible  of  its  infinite  need  of  him,  and  of  its 
own  injustice  !"* 

Slowly  and  discouragingly  the  enlistments  for  the  new  army 
went  on.  One  of  the  chief  difficulties  was  the  new  arrangement 
of  officers,  under  the  plan  agreed  upon  by  the  committee  of  confer 
ence,  the  old  army  containing  thirty-eight  regiments,  and  the  new 
one  to  have  only  twenty-six.  The  delicate  duty  of  reduction 
required  great  judgment,  firmness,  and  discretion.  It  gave  Wash 
ington  and  his  general  officers  infinite  concern  and  perplexity. 
"  The  trouble  I  have  in  the  arrangement  of  the  army,"  he  wrote 
to  the  president  of  Congress  on  the  eleventh  of  November,  "is 
really  inconceivable....  You,  sir,  can  much  easier  judge  than  I 
can  express,  the  anxiety  of  mind  I  must  labor  under  on  the  occa 
sion,  especially  at  this  time,  when  we  may  expect  the  enemy  will 

*  Essays,  Biographical  and  Critical;  or,  Studies  of  Character.     By  HENRY  T.  TUCKERMAN 


756  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

begin  to  act  on  the  arrival  of  their  reinforcement,  part  of  which  is 
^r    already  come,  and  the  remainder  daily  dropping  in." 

Sectional  jealousies  also  produced  great  trouble — "There  ap 
pears  to  be  such  an  unwillingness/'  Washington  wrote  to  the  presi 
dent  of  Congress,  "  in  the  officers  of  one  government  to  mix  in  the 
same  regiment  with  those  of  another."  And  to  Colonel  Reed  he 
wrote,  on  the  same  day :  "  Connecticut  wants  no  Massachusetts  man 
in  their  corps;  Massachusetts  thinks  there  is  no  necessity  for  a 
Rhode-Islander  to  be  introduced  into  hers;  and  New  Hampshire 
says,  it  is  very  hard  that  her  valuable  and  experienced  officers,  who 
are  willing  to  serve,  should  be  discarded,  because  her  own  regi 
ments,  under  the  new  establishment,  can  not  provide  for  them." 
Washington  felt  the  justice  of  some  of  these  feelings,  yet  he  was 
compelled  to  act  according  to  the  dictates  of  his  judgment,  and  the 
resolves  of  the  committee  of  conference.  He  was  also  actuated  by 
an  intense  desire  to  inaugurate  a  union  spirit  among  the  troops,  by 
arranging  the  new  organization  so  that  it  should  be  a  continental 
and  not  a  colonial  army. 

Contentions  and  petty  conspiracies  prevailed  among  the  subordi 
nate  officers  in  the  camp  when  the  enlistment  orders  were  given. 
Those  who  agreed  to  remain  were  zealous  in  recruiting,  and  some 
times  resorted  to  the  mean  practice  of  seducing  men  already 
engaged,  into  their  own  companies.  They  also  enrolled  tories, 
boys,  and  negroes.  These  practices  greatly  annoyed  Washington, 
and,  on  the  twelfth  of  November,  he  issued  such  peremptory  orders 
on  the  subject  that  these  abuses  were  soon  corrected.  The  fickle 
ness  of  officers  also  gave  Washington  much  uneasiness.  The  sol 
diers  would  not  enlist  until  they  knew  who  were  to  be  their  officers, 
so  that  it  was  necessary  to  arrange  these  first.  Many  sent  in  their 
names  with  assurances  that  they  would  serve  in  the  new  army, 
and  then,  changing  their  minds,  would  withdraw  and  declare  their 
intentions  to  retire  at  the  expiration  of  their  term.  This  conduct 
produced  infinite  confusion,  and  greatly  retarded  the  enlistment 
service.  In  fact,  at  the  end  of  a  month's  unceasing  endeavors  to 
re-enlist  those  already  under  arms,  the  coimnander-in-chief  had 


JE.T.  43.]  WASHINGTON'S  TRIALS.  757 

obtained  only  about  five  thousand  recruits.  "Such  a  dearth  of 
public  spirit,"  Washington  wrote  to  Colonel  Reed,  at  the  close  of 
November,  "  and  such  want  of  virtue,  such  stock-jobbing,  and 
fertility  in  all  the  low  arts  to  obtain  advantage  of  one  kind  or 
another,  in  this  great  change  of  military  arrangement,  I  never  saw 
before,  and  pray  God's  mercy  that  I  may  never  be  witness  to 
again.  What  will  be  the  end  of  these  maneuvres  is  beyond  my  scan. 
I  tremble  at  the  prospect.  We  have  been  till  this  time  enlisting 
about  three  thousand  five  hundred  men.  To  engage  them,  I  have 
been  obliged  to  allow  furloughs  as  far  as  fifty  men  to  a  regiment, 
and  the  officers,  I  am  persuaded,  indulge  as  many  more.  The 
Connecticut  troops  will  not  be  prevailed  upon  to  stay  longer  than 
their  time,  saving  those  who  have  enlisted  for  the  next  campaign, 
and  are  mostly  on  furlough ;  and  such  a  mercenary  spirit  pervades 
the  whole,  that  I  should  not  be  at  all  surprised  at  any  disaster  that 
may  happen.  In  short,  after  the  last  of  this  month,  our  lines  will 
be  so  weakened,  that  the  minute-men  and  militia  must  be  called  in 
for  their  defence ;  and  then,  being  under  no  kind  of  government 
themselves,  will  destroy  the  little  subordination  I  have  been  labor 
ing  to  establish,  and  run  me  into  one  evil,  whilst  I  am  endeavoring 
to  avoid  another.  Could  I  have  foreseen  what  I  have  experienced, 
and  am  likely  to  experience,  no  consideration  upon  earth  should 
have  induced  me  to  accept  this  command.  A  regiment  or  any 
subordinate  department  would  have  been  accompanied  with  ten 
times  the  satisfaction,  and,  perhaps,  the  honor." 

This  estimate  of  the  New  England  troops,  and  these  desponding 
reflections  poured  into  the  ears  of  a  personal  friend,  were  natural 
under  the  circumstances.  But  the  more  Washington  became  ac 
quainted  with  the  true  character  of  the  majority  of  the  eastern 
people,  the  more  palpable  became  the  fine  gold  of  its  innate  com 
position,  embedded  beneath  the  dross  of  outward  manifestations. 
Washington  did  not,  for  a  long  time,  fully  comprehend  them,  and 
this  the  sagacious  Greene  clearly  perceived.  That  officer  loved  his 
general  with  enthusiasm,  and  sorely  lamented  the  annoyances  to 
which  he  was  subjected,  yet  his  admiration  did  not  blind  him.  To 


758  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

his  friend  Ward,  the  deputy-governor  of  Rhode  Island,  he  wrote 
apologetically  for  both  parties,  and  said :  "  He  [Washington]  has 
not  had  time  to  make  himself  acquainted  with  the  genius  of  this 
people.  They  are  naturally  as  brave  and  spirited  as  the  peasantry 
of  any  other  country,  but  you  can  not  expect  veterans  of  raw 
militia  from  only  a  few  months'  service.  The  common  people  are 
exceedingly  avaricious;  the  genius  of  the  people  is  commercial, 
from  their  long  intercourse  with  trade.  The  sentiment  of  honor, 
the  true  characteristic  of  a  soldier,  has  not  yet  got  the  better  of 
interest.  His  excellency  has  been  taught  to  believe  the  people 
here  a  superior  race  of  mortals ;  and  finding  them  of  the  same 
temper  and  dispositions,  passions  and  prejudices,  virtues  and  vices 
of  the  common  people  of  other  governments,  they  sank  in  his 
esteem."  This  apology  for  the  New  England  troops,  it  must  be 
confessed,  does  not  give  them  a  very  flattering  character  as  dis 
interested  patriots. 

Washington's  doubts  and  despondencies  prevailed  for  a  moment 
only.  He  soon  arose  above  them,  and  worked  faithfully  and  hope 
fully  on. 

The  departure  of  the  Connecticut  troops  occurred  earlier  than 
the  commander-in-chief  had  anticipated ;  and  it  was  under  circum 
stances  that  needed  an  apologist  even  more  partial  than  General 
Greene,  to  give  it  the  least  color  of  justification.  The  time  of 
enlistment  of  many  of  them  would  expire  on  the  first  of  December, 
and  Washington  asked  the  officers  of  the  several  regiments  whether 
their  men  would  be  willing  to  remain  until  the  first  of  January,  or 
until  a  sufficient  number  of  the  new  recruits  could  be  raised  to 
supply  their  places.  The  officers  expressed  their  belief  that  they 
would ;  but  when  November  drew  to  a  close,  Washington  discerned 
great  uneasiness  among  the  Connecticut  troops,  caused  by  an  irre 
pressible  desire  to  leave  the  service  and  return  home.  Perceiving 
the  danger  to  be  apprehended  by  such  a  sudden  weakening  of  the 
army,  he  called  a  council  of  his  general  officers  at  headquarters, 
and  invited  a  delegation  from  the  Massachusetts  legislature  to  be 
present.  The  object  was  to  adopt  immediate  measures  for  the 


ffiT.  43.]  PREVAILING  MERCENARY  SPIRIT.  759 

support  and  defence  of  the  extensive  American  lines,  by  a  requisi 
tion  upon  the  New  England  militia. 

Here,  again,  the  hands  of  the  commander-in-chief  were  bound  by 
that  wholesome  jealousy  of  military  power  by  which  the  liberties  of 
a  people  are  faithfully  watched.  It  was  the  dread  of  a  standing  army 
that  caused  the  enlistments  for  the  new  organization  to  be  made 
for  only  one  year ;  and  when  Congress,  in  general  terms,  granted 
to  Washington  the  power  to  call  out  the  militia,  it  was  significantly 
asked  by  wise  and  patriotic  men — "If  the  commander-in-chief  can 
call  out  the  whole  force  of  the  countrjr,  when  he  pleases,  where  are 
the  prescribed  bounds  of  his  power  ?  Is  he  not  a  military  dictator  ? 
and  may  not  some  less  patriotic  leader,  pleading  this  precedent  as 
an  excuse,  become  a  despot  ?"  The  Congress  put  an  end  to  fears  on 
this  subject,  by  making  it  incumbent  on  the  commander-in-chief  to 
gain  the  consent  of  the  executive  authority  of  each  colony,  before 
he  summoned  its  militia. 

Delegates  from  the  Massachusetts  legislature  attended  the  coun 
cil,  and  it  was  resolved  to  summon  to  the  camp,  on  or  before  the 
tenth  of  December,  three  thousand  Massachusetts  minute-men  and 
militia,  and  two  thousand  of  those  of  New  Hampshire.  Of  this 
resolve  the  Connecticut  troops  were  made  acquainted,  and  all  were 
requested  to  remain  until  that  date,  because  the  liberties  of  the 
country  would  be  greatly  perilled,  should  they  leave  before  others 
should  arrive  to  supply  their  places.  The  request  was  unheeded, 
and  Washington's  earnest  appeal  to  their  patriotism,  their  pride, 
and  their  honor,  was  of  no  avail.  The  truth  is,  these  men  expected 
a  bounty,  and  when  the  Congress  and  Washington  exhibited  a  disin 
clination  to  purchase,  with  money,  the  services  of  New-Englanders 
in  endeavors  to  rescue  their  capital  from  the  enemy,  they  resolved 
to  desert  the  cause.  This  consideration,  says  Sparks — "had  great 
weight,  perhaps  greater  than  all  the  rest — the  men  expected  a 
bounty."  Disappointed  in  this,  and  yearning  for  home,  they  re 
solved  to  leave  the  camp  on  the  first  of  December.  On  that  day 
many  of  them  departed,  carrying  their  arms  and  ammunition  with 
them.  '•  We  have,  however,"  Washington  wrote  to  the  president 


7fiO  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

of  Congress,  "  by  threats  and  persuasions,  and  the  activity  of  the 
people  of  the  country,  who  sent  back  many  of  them  that  had  set 
out,  prevailed  upon  the  larger  part  to  stay.  There  are  about 
eighty  of  them  missing." 

Washington  complained  of  this  conduct  of  the  Connecticut 
troops  to  Governor  Trumbull,  in  a  letter  written  on  the  second  of 
December.  "  I  have  enclosed  you,"  he  said,  "  a  list  of  the  names 
of  some  of  those  in  General  Putnam's  regiment  only,  who  escaped, 
and  submit  to  your  judgment,  whether  an  example  should  not  be 
made  of  these  men,  who  have  basely  deserted  the  cause  of  their 
country  at  this  critical  juncture,  when  the  enemy  are  receiving 
reinforcements."  The  patriotic  governor  was  greatly  mortified. 
Their  reprehensible  conduct,  he  said,  impressed  his  mind  and  those 
of  many  other  people,  "  with  grief,  surprise,  and  indignation ;  since," 
he  added,  "  the  treatment  they  met  with,  and  the  order  and  request 
made  to  them  were  so  reasonable,  and  apparently  necessary  for  the 
defence  of  our  common  cause,  and  safety  of  our  rights  and  privi 
leges,  for  which  they  freely  engaged."  The  governor  then  kindly 
attempted  to  palliate  their  offence.  He  assured  the  general  that  the 
Connecticut  assembly,  soon  to  convene,  would  support  the  cause 
with  zeal ;  and  concluded  by  saying :  "  Your  candor  and  goodness 
will  suggest  to  your  consideration,  that  the  conduct  of  our  troops 
is  not  a  rule  whereby  to  judge  of  the  temper  and  spirit  of  the 
colony."* 

Washington's  perplexities  in  the  prosecution  of  the  recruiting- 
service  were  heightened  by  the  movements  of  the  enemy,  the  con 
dition  of  his  ammunition  and  the  arms  of  his  soldiery.  Most  of 
the  latter  were  so  imperfect,  that  he  pronounced  them  unfit  for 
proper  service  early  in  November ;  and  the  ammunition  was  seri- 

*  This  conduct  of  the  Connecticut  troops  had  an  unfavorable  effect  upon  others.  "I  greatly  fear 
its  operation  amongst  the  soldiers  of  the  other  colonies,  as  I  am  sensible  this  is  the  genius  and  spirit 
of  our  people,"  wrote  Governor  Trumbull.  General  Greene  said,  in  a  letter  to  Deputy-Governor 
Ward,  at  that  time  :  "  In  my  last,  I  mentioned  to  you  that  the  troops  enlisted  very  slowly  in  general. 
I  was  in  hopes,  then,  that  ours  [Rhode  Island]  would  not  have  deserted  the  cause  of  their  country ; 
but  they  seem  to  be  so  sick  of  this  way  of  life,  and  so  homesick,  that  I  fear  the  greater  part,  and 
the  best  of  the  troops  from  our  colony,  will  go  home.  The  Connecticut  troops  are  going  home  in 
shoals  this  day  " 


JE-r.  43.]  INVADERS  REPULSED.  761 

ously  damaged  by  long-continued  wet  weather.  "  Our  powder,"  he 
said,  "  is  wasting  fast,  notwithstanding  the  strictest  care,  economy, 
and  attention,  are  paid  to  it;"  but  its  spoiled  condition  was  not 
known,  until,  on  the  tenth  of  November,  the  enemy  made  hostile 
demonstrations  that  promised  a  commencement  of  hostilities.  Then 
it  became  necessary  for  the  soldiers  to  examine  their  cartridge- 
boxes,  when  the  alarming  fact  was  revealed,  that  their  powder  was 
spoiled. 

The  demonstrations  alluded  to  was  the  landing  of  six  companies 
of  light-infantry,  and  a  hundred  grenadiers  (about  four  hundred  in 
all),  upon  Lechmere's  point,  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  off  some 
live  stock  there.  They  were  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Clark,  and  came  from  Boston  in  boats,  protected  by  the 
guns  of  the  Cerberus  man-of-war,  and  several  floating  batteries. 
When  the  alarm  was  given,  Colonel  Thompson  led  his  regiment  of 
riflemen,  and  a  portion  of  the  battalions  of  Colonels  Woodbridge  and 
Patterson,  to  attack  the  enemy.  With  singular  courage  they  waded 
through  the  deep  water  that  then  covered  the  causeway  to  the 
point,  in  the  face  of  the  British,  and  drove  them  to  their  boats. 
The  enemy  captured  one  American,  wounded  two  others,  and  car 
ried  away  ten  cows.  This  performance  cost  them  two  human  lives 
and  much  honor.  Washington  regarded  this  as  a  prelude  to  other 
incursions,  for  he  was  informed,  that  "  a  scoundrel  from  Marblehead, 
a  man  of  property,"*  had  carried  to  General  Howe  a  true  statement 
of  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the  new  enlistment,  the  temper  of 
the  American  troops  in  general,  and  the  apathy  and  apparent  dis 
affection  of  some  particular  corps.  It  was  this  apprehension  that 
caused  a  general  inspection  of  the  condition  of  the  army,  and  led 
to  the  alarming  discovery  concerning  the  powder. 

The  increasing  cold  rendered  it  necessary  to  have  all  intrenching 
operations  performed  immediately.  Having  resolved  to  take  pos 
session  of  and  fortify  another  eminence  in  the  face  of  the  enemy, 
Washington  sent  a  detachment  of  the  army,  a  thousand  strong, 
under  General  Putnam,  to  cast  up  some  works  on  Cobble  hill, 

*  Washington  to  Colonel  Reed. 


762  WASHINGTON :   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

whereon  the  M'Lean  Asylum  now  stands.  That  eminence  was 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  British  works  on  Bunker's  hill,  and  a 
like  distance  from  the  enemy's  shipping,  at  West  Boston.  It  was  a 
bleak  spot.  The  weather  was  extremely  cold,  but  the  soldiers, 
though  thinly  clad,  worked  nobly  until  the  dawn,  when  they 
retired.  On  the  following  night  another  party,  under  General 
Heath,  was  sent  to  complete  the  works.  It  was  expected  that  the 
British  would  attack  these  intrenching  parties,  and  preparations 
were  made  for  their  reception,  but  none  appeared.  Not  a  single 
shot  was  hurled  upon  the  delvers ;  and  the  work  which  they  con 
structed  was  so  strong,  that  when  it  was  completed  it  was  called 
"  Putnam's  impregnable  fortress." 

Other  works  were  constructed  a  little  later.  Notwithstanding 
very  cold  weather  prevailed,  and  a  heavy  fall  of  snow  covered  the 
earth,  two  half-moon  batteries  were  erected  between  Lechmere's 
point  and  the  mouth  of  the  Cambridge  creek.  Another  small 
fortification  was  thrown  up  at  the  causeway  leading  to  Lechmere's 
point,  where  a  bomb-battery  was  commenced  at  the  close  of  No 
vember.  Other  intrenchments  were  marked  out  between  Sewall's 
point  and  the  American  lines  at  Roxbury ;  and,  at  the  close  of 
December,  Boston  was  almost  circumvallated  on  the  land  side. 

During  several  days  in  the  earlier  part  of  December,  not  a  gun 
was  fired  by  the  British  upon  the  Americans  engaged  in  construct 
ing  fortifications.  Washington  could  account  for  this  silence  only 
upon  the  supposition,  that  it  was  intended  to  lull  him  into  a  fatal 
security,  to  favor  some  attempt  upon  the  patriots  at  the  close  of 
the  month,  when  the  great  change  in  the  continental  army  was  to 
take  place.  "If  this  be  their  drift,"  Washington  wrote  on  the 
fifteenth,  "  they  deceive  themselves,  for,  if  possible,  it  has  increased 
my  vigilance,  and  induced  me  to  fortify  all  the  avenues  to  our 
camps,  to  guard  against  any  approaches  upon  the  ice." 

The  militia  ordered  to  the  camp  to  fill  the  vacancies  occasioned 
by  retiring  troops,  obeyed  the  call  with  great  promptness,  and,  on 
the  eleventh  of  December,  Washington  said,  in  a  letter  to  the 
president  of  Congress :  "  I  am  much  pleased  with  the  alacrity 


JET.  43.]  SALUTARY  CHANGES  IN  CAMP.  763 

which  the  good  people  of  this  province,  as  well  as  those  of  New 
Hampshire,  have  shown  upon  this  occasion.  I  expect  the  whole 
will  be  in  this  day  and  to-morrow,  when  what  remains  of  the 
Connecticut  gentry,  who  have  not  enlisted,  will  have  liberty  to  go 
to  their  firesides." 

At  about  this  time  Washington  considered  his  situation  a  very 
critical  one.  His  weakness  was  well  known  to  an  enemy  who  were 
daily  increasing  in  numerical  strength.  His  recruiting  officers 
made  slow  progress,  while  his  army  was  rapidly  diminishing.  Win 
ter  was  at  hand,  and  clothing  and  shelter  for  the  troops  were  very 
deficient.  Uneasiness  and  dissatisfaction  pervaded  the  camp,  and 
money  was  doled  out  sparingly  by  Congress  to  the  commander-in- 
chief,  because  men  appointed  to  sign  the  continental  bills  were 
strangely  apathetic.  "For  God's  sake,  hurry  up  the  signers  of 
money  that  our  wants  may  be  supplied,"  Washington  wrote  to 
Richard  Henry  Lee.  "  It  is  a  very  singular  case  that  their  signing 
can  not  keep  pace  with  our  demands." 

But  a  pleasant  and  salutary  change  in  the  aspect  and  condition 
of  the  American  camp  soon  occurred.  The  cheering  news  came 
from  the  North,  that  Montgomery  was  in  possession  of  Montreal, 
and  Arnold  was  at  Quebec.  This  greatly  inspirited  the  people. 
The  number  of  the  militia  called  for  were  all  at  the  lines  at  the 
appointed  time  ;  the  capture  of  British  vessels  with  stores  by  Amer 
ican  cruisers,  and  supplies  from  other  sources,  gave  the  army  an 
ample  quantity  of  provisions,  ammunition,  and  arms;  and  money 
came  in  time,  and  in  sufficient  abundance,  to  meet  the  demand  upon 
the  military-chest.  "  I  have  the  satisfaction,"  wrote  an  American  in 
the  camp  to  his  friend,  on  the  thirteenth  of  December,  "  to  tell  you 
things  wear  a  better  complexion  here  than  they  have  done  for 
some  time  past.  The  army  is  filling  up.  The  barracks  go  on  well. 
Firewood  comes  in.*  The  soldiers  are  made  comfortable  and  easy. 

*  The  army  suffered  very  much  for  want  of  firewood  and  hay.  Energetic  proceedings  were 
finally  instituted  to  procure  supplies,  and  these  were  at  length  successful.  At  the  close  of  Decem 
ber  General  Greene  said,  in  a  letter :  "  We  have  suffered  prodigiously  for  want  of  wood.  Many 
regiments  have  been  obliged  to  eat  their  provisions  raw,  for  want  of  fuel  to  cook  it ;  and  notwith 
standing  we  have  burnt  up  all  the  fences,  and  cut  down  all  the  trees,  for  a  mile  round  the  camp,  our 
sufferings  have  been  inconceivable.  The  barracks  have  been  greatly  delayed  for  want  of  stuff. 


764  WASHINGTON:   A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

Our  privateers  meet  with  success  in  bringing  in  vessels  that  were 
going  to  the  relief  of  Boston."* 

From  this  time  until  the  close  of  the  year,  very  little  of  general 
importance  occurred  in  the  two  armies,  except  an  occasional  ex 
change  of  almost  harmless  shots.  On  the  seventeenth  of  Decem 
ber,  while  thick  fog  lay  upon  the  city,  the  harbor,  and  the  sur 
rounding  country,  General  Putnam,  with  a  party  of  four  hundred 
men,  broke  ground  on  Lechmere's  point,  for  a  new  work  to  connect 
with  those  on  Cobble  hill.  The  fog  disappeared  at  noon,  and  re 
vealed  the  workers  to  the  enemy  on  land  and  water,  and  provoked 
an  attack.  The  Scarborough,  anchored  near,  opened  a  broadside  of 
round  and  grape  shot  upon  them,  and  shells  were  hurled  from 
mortars  on  Barton's  point,  in  Boston.  The  Americans,  who  had 
one  soldier  wounded,  were  compelled  to  flee,  but  at  night  they 
were  there  again,  under  the  brave  old  veteran,  and  prosecuted  their 
work  with  vigor.  Early  the  next  morning,  Captain  Smith,  of  the 
American  artillery,  opened  a  fire  upon  the  Scarborough,  with  two 
eighteen-pounders  on  Cobble  hill,  and  made  her  withdraw  to  some 
distance  from  her  anchorage;  and  General  Heath,  with  another 
party,  proceeded  to  prosecute  the  work.  An  ineffectual  fire  upon 
them  was  kept  up  for  some  time,  when  it  ceased,  and  in  the  after 
noon  Washington  and  his  staff  visited  the  eminence  and  inspected 
the  work,  upon  which  the  mortar  taken  by  Manly,  and  christened 
"  Congress,"  was  to  be  mounted.  Upon  this  work  Washington 
placed  great  reliance  for  future  operations. 

The  other  fortifications  were  prosecuted  with  vigor,  in  spite 
of  the  cannonading  of  the  British,  and  much  to  their  annoy 
ance.  In  allusion  to  the  new  work  on  Lechmere's  point,  a 
British  officer  wrote :  "  If  the  rebels  can  complete  their  battery, 

Many  of  the  troops  are  yet  in  their  tents,  and  will  be  for  some  time,  especially  the  officers.  The 
fatigues  of  the  campaign,  the  suffering  for  want  of  food  and  clothing,  have  made  a  multitude  of 
soldiers  heartily  sick  of  the  service."  All  this  was  known  to  the  enemy.  "  The  provincial  troops 
before  Boston,"  wrote  i\  British  officer,  early  in  November,  "  are  in  want  of  clothing  and  firing  to  a 
degree  scarcely  to  be  credited,  and  must  break  up  their  camp  before  winter,  but  will,  probably, 
attempt  a  coup  de  main.  They  have  burnt  all  the  fruit-trees,  and  those  planted  for  ornament,  in  the 
environs  of  Cambridge,  and  are  mutinous  beyond  measure." 
*  Frothingham's  "  Siege  of  Boston,"  page  274. 


Mr.  43.]  HOME  AND  ITS  ATTRACTIONS.  765 

this  town  will  be  on  fire  about  our  ears  a  few  hours  after ;  all  our 
buildings  being  of  wood,  or  a  mixture  of  brick  and  wood-work. 
Had  the  rebels  erected  their  battery  on  the  other  side  of  the  town, 
at  Dorchester,  the  admiral  and  all  his  booms  would  have  made  the 
first  blaze,  and  the  burning  of  the  town  would  have  followed.  If 
we  can  not  destroy  the  rebel  battery  by  our  guns,  we  must  march 
out  and  take  it  sword  in  hand." 

The  absorbing  cares  and  multifarious  duties  of  the  camp,  did  not 
prevent  the  thoughts  of  Washington  going  out  frequently  to  his 
far-off  home  on  the  Potomac,  where  his  wife  was  dwelling,  near 
common  dangers  that  threatened  the  province,  and  where  peaceful 
pursuits  beckoned  him  from  the  turmoil  of  military  life,  with  power 
ful  appeals.  But  duty  was  ever  more  powerful  than  inclination  in 
its  control  of  the  actions  of  Washington.  The  good  of  his  country 
demanded  his  constant  presence  before  the  enemy,  and  the  expecta 
tion  that  he  should  return  to  his  wife  "  in  the  fall"  could  not  be 
realized.  He,  therefore,  wrote  to  Mrs.  Washington,  by  express,  in 
November,  inviting  her  to  Cambridge,  to  spend  the  winter  with 
him  at  headquarters.  A  little  later  he  wrote  to  Mr.  Lund  Washing 
ton,  the  general  superintendent  of  his  affairs  at  Mount  Vernon, 
concerning  the  management  of  the  plantations.  He  was  a  distant 
relative,  and  managed  Washington's  agricultural  affairs  during  the 
whole  war,  with  great  fidelity,  communicating  almost  every  week, 
to  the  general,  a  minute  report  of  operations  under  his  control. 
These  letters  Washington  regularly  answered,  and  returned  full 
instructions  to  his  manager  respecting  crops,  laborers,  et  cetera. 

In  his  letter  to  his  superintendent  at  this  time,  Washington 
expressed  a  desire  to  engage  him  as  a  permanent  agent.  After 
referring  to  difficulties  to  be  apprehended  in  promising  to  pay 
wages  in  cash,  he  reveals  a  picture  of  domestic  policy  at  that  time, 
by  saying :  "  I  will  engage  for  the  coming  year,  and  the  year  fol 
lowing,  if  these  troubles  and  my  absence  continue,  that  your  wages 
shall  be  standing  and  certain,  at  the  highest  amount  that  any  one 
year's  crop  has  produced  to  you  yet.  I  do  not  offer  this  as  any 
temptation  to  induce  you  to  go  on  more  cheerfully  in  prosecuting 


766  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

these  schemes  of  mine.  I  should  do  injustice  to  you,  were  I  not  to 
acknowledge,  that  your  conduct  has  ever  appeared  to  me  as  above 
everything  sordid ;  but  I  offer  it  in  consideration  of  the  great 
charge  you  have  upon  your  hands,  and  my  entire  dependence  upon 
your  fidelity  and  industry."  After  expressing  his  satisfaction  that 
his  affairs  were  in  such  faithful  keeping,  he  added  :— 

"  Let  the  hospitality  of  the  house,  with  respect  to  the  poor,  be 
kept  up.  Let  no  one  go  hungry  away.  If  any  of  this  kind  of 
people  should  be  in  want  of  corn,  supply  their  necessities,  provided 
it  does  not  encourage  them  in  idleness ;  and  I  have  no  objection  to 
your  giving  my  money  in  charity,  to  the  amount  of  forty  or  fifty 
pounds  a  year,  when  you  think  it  well  bestowed.  What  I  mean  by 
having  no  objection  is,  that  it  is  my  desire  that  it  should  be  done. 
You  are  to  consider,  that  neither  myself  nor  wife  is  now  in  the  \vay 
to  do  these  good  offices.  In  all  other  respects,  I  recommend  it  to 
you,  and  have  no  doubt  of  your  observing  the  greatest  economy 
and  frugality ;  as  I  suppose  you  know,  that  I  do  not  get  a  farthing 
for  my  services  here,  more  than  my  expenses.  It  becomes  neces 
sary,  therefore,  for  me  to  be  saving  at  home." 

Mrs.  Washington  left  Mount  Vernon  on  the  fifteenth  of  Novem 
ber,  accompanied  by  her  son  (John  Parke  Custis),  and  his  wife, 
with  servants.  They  travelled  in  the  elegant  state  then  common 
among  the  wealthy  families  of  Virginia,  riding  in  a  chariot  drawn 
by  four  bay  horses  of  purest  English  blood,  and  driven  by  black 
postilions  arrayed  in  livery  of  scarlet  and  white.  They  made  easy 
journeys,  because  the  roads  were  bad  and  Washington  was  always 
extremely  careful  of  his  horses.  Their  first  night  was  passed  at 
Georgetown,  and  thence  they  made  their  way,  in  the  course  of  two 
days,  to  Baltimore,  escorted  long  distances  between  their  halting- 
places  by  volunteer  guards  of  honor,  composed  of  the  gentry  of 
the  country  and  villages  through  which  they  passed.  From  Balti 
more  they  proceeded  by  way  of  the  head  of  Elk,  Wilmington,  and 
Chester,  and  arrived  at  Philadelphia  on  the  twenty-first.  From 
Gray's  Ferry,  on  the  Schuylkill,  they  were  escorted  into  the  city 
by  the  second  battalion  of  lightrinfantry,  and  a  troop  of  light-horse. 


JR-r.  43.]  MRS.  WASHINGTON  IN  PHILADELPHIA.  767 

Mrs.  Washington  received  unremitting  attentions  in  Philadelphia, 
for  which  the  general  expressed  his  gratitude  to  Colonel  Reed,  then 
there,  saying :  "  I  am  so  much  indebted  for  the  civilities  shown  Mrs. 
Washington  on  her  journey  hither,  that  I  hardly  know  how  to  go 
about  to  acknowledge  them.  Some  of  the  enclosed  (all  of  which  I 
beg  the  favor  of  you  to  put  into  the  postoffice),  are  directed  to 
that  end.  I  shall  be  obliged  to  you  for  presenting  my  thanks  to 
the  commanding  officers  of  the  two  battalions  of  Philadelphia,  for 
the  honors  they  have  done  her  and  me,  as  also  to  any  others 
equally  entitled." 

Before  her  arrival,  a  ball  in  honor  of  Mrs.  Washington,  to  be 
held  at  the  New  City  tavern,  had  been  arranged,  and  she  accepted 
an  invitation  to  attend  it.  Such  an  assembly  being  in  violation  of 
the  spirit  of  the  eighth  article  of  the  American  Association,  adopted 
by  Congress  a  year  before,  much  feeling  against  the  ball  was  mani 
fested.  It  was  ascertained  that  Mrs.  Hancock  would  attend  it  with 
Mrs.  Washington ;  and  Christopher  Marshall,  who  has  left  a  record 
of  the  affair  in  his  diary,  volunteered  to  see  President  Hancock  on 
the  subject.  The  ball  was  to  take  place  on  the  evening  of  the 
twenty-fourth,  and  at  three  o'clock  that  afternoon,  Mr.  Marshall 
called  at  Mr.  Hancock's  lodgings.  He  had  not  yet  returned  from 
the  State-House,  and  thither  Marshall  went,  and  requested  Samuel 
Adams  to  be  called  to  the  door.  He  told  Mr.  Adams  where  and 
when  the  ball  was  to  be  held,  and  requested  him  to  ask  Mr.  Han 
cock  to  call  on  Mrs.  Washington  and  state  the  nature  of  the 
objections  made. 

Meanwhile,  a  meeting  of  leading  whigs  had  assembled  at  the 
Philosophical  Hall  to  consider  the  matter,  so  tenacious  were  they  of 
preserving  the  honor  of  the  city  and  colony,  by  being  obedient  to 
the  solemn  covenant  about  to  be  violated.  It  was  resolved  by 
them  that  the  ball  must  not  be  held ;  and  they  appointed  a  com 
mittee  of  four  gentlemen  to  wait  upon  Mrs.  Washington,  to  ex 
press  their  regard  and  affection  for  her,  and  request  and  desire  her 
not  to  grace  the  company  that  evening,  to  which  she  was  invited. 
Major  Bayard,  who  was  chairman  of  that  committee,  performed  the 


768  WASHINGTON:    A  BIOGRAPHY.  [1775. 

duties  gracefully.  Mrs.  Washington  thanked  them  for  their  kind 
care  and  regard  in  giving  such  timely  notice,  and  assured  them  that 
their  sentiments  "  were  perfectly  agreeable  unto  her  own."  Mar 
shall  says,  that  in  the  evening,  while  he  was  at  the  lodgings  of 
Samuel  Adams,  Colonel  Harrison,  of  Virginia,  came  in  and  rebuked 
the  Puritan  delegate  from  New  England,  "  for  using  his  influence 
for  the  stopping  of  this  entertainment,  which  he  declared  was  legal, 
just,  and  laudable.  Many  arguments,"  continued  Marshall,  "  were 
used  by  all  present  to  convince  him  of  the  impropriety,  at  this 
time,  but  all  to  no  effect;  so,  as  he  came  out  of  humor,  he  so 
retired,  to  all  appearance." 

After  being  entertained  in  Philadelphia  several  days,  Mrs.  Wash 
ington  left  for  Cambridge  on  the  twenty-seventh,  attended  by  the 
troop  of  horse,  two  companies  of  lightrinfantry,  and  a  cavalcade  of 
civilians.  She  passed  through  New  York,  but  made  only  a  short 
visit  there,  for  she  felt  anxious  to  join  her  husband,  from  whom  she 
had  been  separated  several  months.  All  through  New  Jersey, 
New  York,  and  New  England,  she  received  the  same  delicate  atten 
tions,  and  arrived  at  Cambridge  on  the  eleventh  of  December. 
Her  advent  there  was  a  joyful  occasion,  not  only  for  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  but  for  the  whole  army.  It  was  at  the  moment 
when  affairs  in  camp  began  to  brighten ;  and  the  presence  of  Mrs. 
Washington  seemed  to  shed  a  genial  light  upon  the  rough  visage 
of  war.  The  wives  of  other  officers  arrived  soon  afterward;  and 
the  Christmas  holy  days  were  spent  in  Cambridge  in  the  enjoyment 
of  all  the  innocent  pleasures  which  a  half-camp  and  half-town  life 
afforded.  Dinner  and  evening  parties  at  headquarters,  and  among 
the  neighboring  inhabitants,  were  frequent,  and  the  best  feeling 

prevailed. 

I 


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